Lanessa Rodriguez was a feisty, amazing woman and “a beautiful human being,” friends said.
“Lanessa helped everyone,” said Dominique Taylor, 44, of St. Lucie County. “Lanessa would take her shirt off her back so you can eat.”
Friends in recent days remembered Rodriguez, 35, who Fort Pierce Police said was fatally shot April 28 by a 20-year-old man in Cash Out Gold and Silver on South U.S. 1 where investigators said Rodriguez was the manager. The accused shooter, Landen Ballard, of Vero Beach, was arrested April 29.
Nayomy Nomelin, 36, of Boynton Beach, considered Rodriguez her best friend. The two share a birthday.
“We celebrate our birthdays together since we were 19,” she said. “We would travel together.”
Nomelin described Rodriguez as an “incredible person with a huge heart.”
She said Rodriguez had two sisters and a brother. She was close with her family, and doted on her grandmother.
“Her grandmother was like the light of her life,” Nomelin said. “She was just great with her family. She was amazing with kids.”
Nomelin said Rodriguez was living in Boynton Beach, but bought a house in St. Lucie County that she was fixing up.
Taylor, a transgender woman and a high-profile drag performer, said Rodriguez “had a heart of gold.”
“I was so proud of her as a trans woman watching her coming up with her business partner,” Taylor said. “It’s crazy because as soon as a trans woman starts … looking ahead for her family and growing, they try to hurt us.”
Police identified the slain woman as Lazaro Rodriguez Vega, but friends know her as Lanessa Rodriguez.
Police on May 1 reported they continue trying to determine a motive in the homicide.
“I don’t understand why this guy went there,” Taylor said. ”What’s the reason?”
Taylor said she met Rodriguez in West Palm Beach in the 2000s.
Nomelin said Rodriguez was involved in the gold and silver business in Fort Pierce and one in Vero Beach.
Nomelin connected with Rodriguez last week, and she “showed me her brand new store in Vero and was just so excited.”
On April 26 they saw “Michael,” a movie about the late pop singer Michael Jackson.
“We went together and we laughed and we cried and we went to dinner afterwards and we were just remembering stories and all the stuff we’ve been through,” Nomelin said. “It was such a beautiful moment to be able to share those memories with her like we used to, but it was extra special on Sunday (April 26).”
Nomelin said they spoke about things they hadn’t talked of in years.
“We went from being these young, wild children to her settling down and buying this house in Port St. Lucie and making her business successful,” she said. “I’m in school. I graduate on Wednesday (May 6) and I wanted her to be there.”
Nomelin said Rodriguez’s nieces and nephews looked to her like an aunt.
“My niece … was absolutely devastated, like, I mean hysterically crying,” Nomelin said.
“She was generous with the kids. She was just very nice to everyone around her. She always looked out for everyone.”
Taylor said Rodriguez is of Puerto Rican heritage, with family in South Florida.
Rodriguez, she said, is a long-time member of the Palm Beach County trans community.
“When a trans woman gets murdered, all of us get murdered,” Taylor said. “When one of us dies, we all die.”
Will Greenlee is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Will on X @OffTheBeatTweet or reach him by phone at 772-267-7926. E-mail him at will.greenlee@tcpalm.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Exclusive: Woman slain in Florida business was ‘a beautiful human being’
Reporting by Will Greenlee, Treasure Coast Newspapers / Treasure Coast Newspapers
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