Monique Brooks. (Photo from Brooks’ Facebook)
ORLANDO | Monique Brooks, a 49-year-old transgender woman, was shot and killed near the Florida Mall in Orlando July 19, and authorities are still searching for a suspect.
Brooks was found in the parking lot of the Burlington Coat Factory, located at 8204 South Orange Blossom Trail, around 3:50 a.m. and was taken to the hospital where she later died, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
Little else is known about the incident, leading police to offer a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. Anyone with information is urged to call Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS.
Brooks death marks at least the 22nd killing of a trans person in the U.S. since the start of 2024, according to the Human Rights Campaign, and the third in Florida.
Brooks was an LGBTQ+ rights activist who was actively involved with Divas in Dialogue.
“Monique was one of the sweetest souls I’ve ever known,” Mulan Montrese Williams, executive director Of Divas in Dialogue, said to HRC. “She has always been the life of the party and willing to help anyone in need. She will be truly missed. Her kindness and outgoing spirit will never be forgotten.”
Speaking with FOX35 in Orlando, Brooks’ sibling, Lecia Paul called Brooks “fun loving” and “brilliant.”
“If anybody, anywhere, hears anything, sees anything, even just an inkling of anything please reach out to law enforcement,” Paul said. “Please, please, this didn’t have to happen.”
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