LABELLE, Fla. — Over 150 people gathered outside of a church in LaBelle on Monday night to honor the life of a 15-year-old boy who was hit by a car while riding his bicycle.
His killer still hasn’t been found.
Eduardo Dayan Lopéz Escobedo was only 15 years old, but he touched hundreds of people during his lifetime.
Eduardo leaves behind a family, two little sisters, an older brother and many cousins.
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The grass was packed outside of Lady Queen of Heaven Catholic Church. Hundreds of people showed up to honor his life and pray for peace for his family.
They prayed, sang songs, cried, lit candles and held a moment of silence.
“A very joyful heart, a very joyful soul, he loved to dance, he loved to laugh,” said Eduardo’s youth group leader.
Last Thursday, Eduardo was hit by a car while riding his bicycle. A few days later, his mother found a few of his remains lying next to the road.
Eduardo’s family’s hearts are broken and they’re frustrated that law enforcement hasn’t found the person who killed him.
Selina Barron is one of Eduardo’s aunts. She said the day after Eduardo was killed her husband walked the scene and found car parts on the side of the road. Eduardo’s mom also found some of her son’s remains.
“I wanna know why they failed to do this work, why does his mother have to see part of his body there?” said Barron.
“We are a very small town and I know as a town we can do a lot. It’s a little hard for me to understand the way that it’s been handled as far as trying to find answers… the whole town knows everyone,” said Barron.
“We just want justice for him, he deserves that… he’s just a young child and he deserves that!” said Barron. “It’s just really hard to think there will be another day tomorrow. What’s going to happen tomorrow? Today was hard for the family to go choose where he’s gonna be forever.”
Florida Highway Patrol has found a white SUV they believe hit Eduardo, but they still need to perform forensic testing to confirm the SUV hit and killed him, and then find the driver. FHP and SWFL Crime Stoppers are still urging you to let them know if you saw something or if you know the suspect. You can do so anonymously by submitting a tip online here.