Custodian Jorge Torres Hidalgo was completing his daily maintenance tasks on campus when he came upon an appalling scene — fellow custodians Ted Orama and Christopher Marshall lying dead in Building 8.

Although the specific times of death are still unknown, the bodies of the two men were found at 6 a.m. on Wednesday, June 19, just four days after the school’s annual arts camp ended. The deaths came as a shock to all students and faculty, who have never experienced serious crime and violence on school grounds.

“I was completely shocked,” communications alumnus (’13) Matthew Baquero said. “I woke up at 8:20 a.m. and checked [Facebook] and saw someone post ‘RIP to the two people who died at Dreyfoos today.’ I was freaked out.”

The local police along with the FBI investigated the crime scene. Later the SWAT team searched the campus looking for an active shooter; however, they could not find any suspects.

“The first thing I saw as I drove up northbound on Tamarind was a bunch of police cars blocking the entrance to the bus loop,” Baquero said. “I looked at the school through the gates toward the back of the cafeteria and saw the SWAT team pulling in. They got out and headed to the passage that leads to the cafeteria. There were probably 20 of them.”

The police came to the conclusion that Mr. Orama and Mr. Marshall were victims of a double homicide, naming another fellow custodian, Javier Burgos, as a person of interest. According the Palm Beach Post, Burgos takes medication for his depression and is known to be in possession of weapons. According to the Post, Burgos’ sister mentioned that he had been complaining about having issues with his supervisor, Mr. Orama. As of Tuesday, July 2, Burgos still has not been accounted for. Burgos’ disappearance has created mixed opinions among the Dreyfoos community.

“Everyone needs to stop creating a dull panic,” theatre senior Sarah Hardwick said. “We have very few details on the crime and therefore we cannot judge or approximate the situation.”

“He didn’t show up to work, that doesn’t mean he murdered his coworkers and is running away,” communications senior Kelsey Noyes said. “Everyone needs to stop posting things until they are proven true.”

Over the years that Mr. Orama and Mr. Marshall worked at the school, students and faculty crossed paths and developed close relationships with the men. The custodians are welcomed as valuable members to the school family.

“I had developed kind of a funny relationship with Mr. Orama. I would always leave things in buildings and he would always be the one unlocking the doors for me to enter through,” strings junior Fabiola Plaza said. “Since it happened on multiple occasions, it would make him laugh a little every time.”

“One time [Mr. Marshall] came up to me when I was walking to class and asked me where I got the headphones that I had,” Baquero said. “He said he wanted to get his son a really nice Christmas gift and was thinking about getting him a nice pair of headphones.”

The untimely deaths of Mr. Orama and Mr. Marshall devastated the Dreyfoos family. Students and faculty will never forget these two men and the tragedy that they were involved in.

“I am devastated that something like this could happen at our school,” band senior Valerie Martin said. “I recognize the faces of the two that were killed and it breaks my heart that I’ll never see them again.”