Orestes Betancourt, 33, of Hialeah, Florida, was fatally shot on August 7, 2021 while at a gas station where he owned a car wash. According to reports, Betancourt approached a dark blue BMW and a gunman inside the vehicle opened fire. He was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital and pronounced dead.

Investigators identified Eduardo Macias as a primary suspect; two other people were reportedly in the BMW. After the shooting, Macias barricaded himself inside a Hialeah apartment complex and surrendered after an hours-long standoff. He was initially charged with second-degree murder, but prosecutors later dropped that charge under Florida’s Stand Your Ground law, saying they could not disprove his claim of self-defense. Macias remained charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Surveillance footage from the gas station captured the moments before the shooting.

Friends and family mourned and called for justice while legal questions about self-defense in this case remained unresolved. If anyone witnessed the shooting or has additional information about the events at the gas station, please share what is known.