Brandon Grimes, a Liverpool supporter and FA referee from Seaham, County Durham, died in a hit-and-run in Florida on Friday, September 25. He was just 26 years old.
Brandon had travelled to Florida on holiday with a friend. His family and partner have since been left trying to piece together what happened and bring him home to the UK.
Tragic Loss of Liverpool Supporter Brandon Grimes in Florida Hit-and-Run
Brandon’s family confirmed his death in a statement shared through a GoFundMe page set up to help bring him home. They remembered him as “a gentle, bright, funny, and wonderful soul who brought so much light, love, and joy to everyone who knew him.”
“It is with a broken heart that we share the passing of our beloved, beautiful, cherished boy Brandon. He was tragically taken from us on the 25th of September at the age of only 26. Brandon is deeply loved by us all and will be missed beyond words, and our lives will never be the same without him. Brandon was a gentle, bright, funny, and wonderful soul who brought so much light, love, and joy to everyone who knew him, he truly was the life and soul of the party. Our family is completely devastated, and the pain of losing him this way is something no family should ever have to bear. Our lives have been shattered, and we are completely lost without him.”
The family have not shared further details about the collision. No additional information about the circumstances has been made public at this stage.
Family Appeals for Answers Following Fatal USA Incident
Brandon’s partner, David Jackson, said the family have been left with more questions than answers. Brandon was in Florida with his friend Tom when the incident happened.
“We have a lot more questions than we do answers at the moment, we don’t fully know what happened or why. It just doesn’t make any sense. We are trying to get all of the information and get justice for him, while his entire family are grieving at the same time. Looking back, it was clear that something wasn’t right, he was trying to ring me and his friend Tom, who he was there with, and I got back just 15 minutes later, but I have since found out that he was already gone by then. We are all absolutely devastated, and the most frustrating part is that we don’t know the whole story.”
David also described the lack of communication with authorities in the United States as a major obstacle. The family are trying to establish what happened while also making arrangements to bring Brandon back to the UK.
Community Reaction and FA Referee Background
Brandon was an FA referee with a deep love of football. He followed Liverpool and England closely. David also spoke about their relationship and the future they had been planning together.
“He was a referee for the FA, and he loved football, Liverpool FC and England especially. We had only been together since February, but we were making a lot of plans, and the future we were talking about won’t happen now. He has a huge family who have all been destroyed by this, with loads of siblings, and he loved them, his nieces, Nana and Grandad, and Mam and stepdad so much. We are desperate to bring him back, and we are trying to find an international funeral director to help, but the lack of communication we have had from American makes this very difficult.”
News of Brandon’s death has spread among Liverpool supporters online. The same fan community that recently celebrated Liverpool’s derby win at Anfield and the victory on the south coast has been sharing tributes and messages of support for his family.
Repatriation Fundraiser and Next Steps for Family
David and Brandon’s family have launched a GoFundMe campaign to help cover the cost of bringing his body back to the UK. Donations have been coming in since the appeal went live, according to a Liverpool Echo report.
“The financial costs of bringing someone home can be overwhelming, and we want to ensure our Brandon gets the journey home he deserves. If you are in a position to donate, no matter how small, we are endlessly grateful, and if you can’t donate, simply sharing this page, keeping Brandon in your thoughts, and helping us fight for him means more to us than words can say.”
The family are also searching for an international funeral director to help with the repatriation. They say the limited communication they have received from American authorities has made the process more difficult.
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