FSU Shooting Victim Robert Morales Remembered as Dedicated Campus Employee, Family Man

Robert Morales, a beloved Florida State University dining services employee and Miami-Dade native, was identified Friday as one of two people killed in Thursday’s mass shooting on the FSU campus that left six others wounded, authorities and family members said.

Morales, who had worked as a dining coordinator at FSU since 2015, was remembered by relatives and colleagues as a devoted husband, father and community member. “Today we lost my younger Brother, He was one of the victims killed at FSU. He loved his job at FSU and his beautiful Wife and Daughter. I’m glad you were in my Life,” his brother, Ricardo Morales Jr., wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

A graduate of Hialeah Senior High School and Florida State University, Morales was also one of the original founders of Gordos Cuban Cuisine, a popular Tallahassee restaurant, according to friend Carlos Cruz. Morales underwent a kidney transplant in 2021 after a long illness, according to a GoFundMe page created by a colleague.

FSU officials said the shooting erupted around lunchtime Thursday outside the Student Union. Investigators identified the suspected gunman as Phoenix Ikner, a 20-year-old FSU student and son of a Leon County sheriff’s deputy, who allegedly used his mother’s former service weapon in the attack. Police responded quickly, shooting and wounding Ikner before taking him into custody.

The university canceled all classes and events through Sunday and scheduled a vigil for the victims Friday evening. “We are heartbroken to confirm that an Aramark employee was among those killed at FSU yesterday in that senseless act of violence,” said an Aramark spokesperson, Morales’ employer.

Morales is survived by his wife and daughter. Details about the second victim have not been released. The motive for the shooting remains under investigation.