Ariel Collazo, 23, of Tamarac was found dead on November 13, 2020, in Pompano Beach after being discovered in a car that had been stolen during a carjacking in Boca Raton earlier that day. The carjacking took place around 1 a.m. in a Mizner Park parking garage. The stolen black Cadillac was tracked to the 1100 block of Northwest 18th Drive in Pompano Beach, where deputies found Collazo deceased in the driver’s seat and a loaded firearm in the vehicle.

Investigators say Collazo was not the victim of the Boca Raton carjacking; the passenger, 20-year-old Alex Exantus of North Lauderdale, fled the scene and was later apprehended at a nearby apartment complex. Exantus was charged in connection with a separate carjacking the previous night in North Lauderdale. Broward Sheriff’s Office homicide detectives are investigating the circumstances of Collazo’s shooting, and the medical examiner is determining the exact cause of death.

Family members described Collazo as someone who was always smiling and trying to do right by his mother and said he did not possess the gun found in the car. His past record included arrests for attempted robbery and burglary. Is there anyone who saw the black Cadillac in Boca Raton or Pompano Beach that morning who can help fill the gaps in the timeline?