Slain pair mourned

‘This so rough,’ brother and cousin of victims says; suspect in shootings is 14 years old

LAKE WORTH — Zach Miner already was grieving the shooting deaths of his brother and cousin. His relatives died so young, each in their early 20s.

But the double-homicide case took a turn Thursday, when authorities said the person responsible for the slayings was a14-year-old boy.

“It’s devastating. And then to find out it’s a 14-year-old kid. For just a little bit of money?” Miner said Friday. “I guess little things like that matter these days to certain people.”

The teen is facing murder charges in the deaths of Miner’s brother, Ricky Miner, 23, and his cousin, Andrew Laudano, 21.

Zach Miner, 21, said he doesn’t know how, or if, his brother and cousin knew the suspect. “I’ve never seen the kid,” Miner said. “It’s just crazy to know that a14-year-old was wandering around these streets and had a firearm in his pocket.”

On April 7, the victims

were

found

dead with gunshot wounds in West Boynton. One of the men was found in a Dodge Charger, the other was found just outside the vehicle, parked along Talway Circle in the Melrose Park neighborhood off Lyons Road, authorities said.

An arrest report detailing the allegations against the teenager hasn’t been released.

The teenager was being held Friday at a juvenile detention center. And in the coming weeks, a judge will decide whether he will be charged as an adult.

Zach Miner said he and his relatives always were hanging out. Some of his best memories are of him spending time with his brother and cousin. The three were together hours before Ricky Miner and Laudano were found dead, he said.

“We were just listening to music,” Miner said. “We were all doing our laundry, just normal-type stuff, I guess. I could have easily been in that car that same night.”

Years ago, when Zach Miner played football in high school, his brother Ricky always was at the games, cheering him on, he said. And about a decade ago, when Andrew Laudano’s mother died, Zach Miner was the first person Laudano called, Miner said.

The three always were trying to improve each other’s lives, he said.

“It’s a completely different feeling knowing that I can’t talk with the two people that you basically grew up with anymore,” Miner said. “This is life-changing. This is so rough, it’s so rough.”

Ricky Miner’s funeral was Wednesday. For 30 minutes at the funeral, all Zach Miner did was stand near his brother’s casket, he said.

“Every day I wake up, and I have to think, I can’t get that phone call I’m expecting. ... I can’t talk to him no more.”

Miner said he respected Laudano, a father of one. “He loved his son,” Miner said. “That was unconditional. Every decision he made was for his son.”

Other news media reported that the killing suspect was detained at Palm Beach International Airport. A sheriff’s spokesperson declined to confirm that Friday, citing the open case.

Mary Hougen, the mother of Zach Miner and Ricky Miner, said she was troubled by the 14-year-old’s reported attempt to leave town. “I just want to say to parents out there: Keep your eyes on your kids — no matter what they do,” she said. asacasa@tribpub.com, 561-243-6607 or Twitter & Instagram @adamsacasa