Florida authorities are investigating a suspected homicide after a former mayor’s brother’s body was discovered at a landfill on Saturday.
On Wednesday, the Tallahassee Police Department identified the body found at Springhill Landfill in Campbellton as Jorge Diaz-Johnston, 54. Diaz-Johnston’s brother is ex-Miami mayor and Florida Democratic Party chairman Manny Diaz.
Diaz-Johnston, an LGBTQ activist, was last seen in Tallahassee on January 3. Tallahassee police issued a missing person alert on Saturday — the same day landfill workers located his body, according to WMBB.
The news outlet reported that Diaz-Johnston’s body was found in a load of garbage that came from Baker landfill in Okaloosa County.
In 2014, Diaz-Johnston and his then-fiancee were among five same-sex couples who sued Miami-Dade County for marriage licenses. The six couples won their case, leading Miami-Dade County to be the first county in Florida to permit same-sex marriage. Same-sex marriage was legalized throughout the state in 2015.
Authorities have not revealed how Diaz-Johnston’s body ended up at the Jackson County landfill. It is also unclear whether he was the victim of a hate crime.
The Tallahassee Democrat reported that an autopsy was performed on Wednesday, but the results have not been released to the public.
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[Featured image: Jorge Diaz-Johnston/Facebook]
