(ProsperNews.net) A transgender woman has been beaten to death near Miami Beach. The Miami Police Department issued a statement saying it had opened an investigation focusing on a tourism hotspot near Liberty Avenue. Officers later identified the dead person as Andrea Dos Passos, whose body was found close to the Miami City Ballet on April 23.
Surveillance footage shows Dos Passos, who was homeless, arriving at the scene just before midnight and bedding down in a doorway. Shortly afterward, a man wearing a black shirt and red shorts approaches the victim before walking away, securing a metal bar, and returning to beat Dos Passos, who died from severe head trauma.
Police reports detail the arrival of a ballet company employee, who turned up for work and tried to awaken who she thought was a sleeping woman in the doorway. She soon discovered that the individual was dead and called the police. Dos Passos reportedly endured horrific injuries, including “two wooden sticks” in the nostrils and a chest puncture wound.
Victor Van Gilst, Dos Passos’ stepfather, said, “I knew one day this could happen.” He went on to describe a long history of mental health problems, adding, “Andrea was trans. We thought at first it could be a hate crime.”
On April 25, police announced they had made an arrest and charged Gregory Fitzgerald Gibert with second-degree murder. Officers said the 53-year-old suspect was wearing the same “unique” sneakers worn by the killer in the surveillance footage, and these were stained with blood.
Several LGBTQ and human rights groups have spoken out about the murder and called for the addition of hate crime charges.
Dade County’s LGBTQ Democratic Caucus said the crime was an act of hate towards trans individuals, but Miami Beach Police Chief Wayne Jones stated that there was no evidence for this. He said his department will work closely with the district attorney’s office to ensure the case is prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
Copyright 2024, ProsperNews.net
