CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Dariel Gonzalez’s alleged racist and violent posts on a Miami-Dade County Republican Party’s WhatsApp group cost him his position in Coral Gables.

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Martha Pantin, the director of communications and public affairs for the city of Coral Gables, released a statement on Friday afternoon.

“The City of Coral Gables moved swiftly when we became aware of the deeply offensive posts attributed to Mr. Dariel Gonzalez,” Pantin wrote. “The language that has been reported is heinous and has no place in our community.”

Gonzalez was a volunteer docent at the Merrick House, a landmark on the National Register of Historic Places at 907 Coral Way.

It was the childhood home of the late developer George Merrick, who founded the city and the University of Miami, and whose advocacy for racist policies prompted more than 6,800 UM students to sign a Change petition to remove the Merrick name from a building.

Gonzalez, previously referred to by the city as a local historian, was such a fan of Merrick that he had done presentations about him for the Historic Preservation Association of Coral Gables at the public library in Coral Gables.

“Effective immediately upon learning of these posts, he was removed from that role and is no longer affiliated with the Merrick House in any capacity,” Pantin wrote about a WhatsApp chat that detectives with the Florida International University Police Department were investigating with local, state, and federal law enforcement.

Gonzalez had identified online as an FIU student and as a research assistant for an architectural firm in Coral Gables.

“Coral Gables unequivocally condemns racism, antisemitism, homophobia, misogyny, and discrimination of any kind,” Pantin wrote. “Our public institutions must reflect the values of respect, dignity, and inclusion that define our city.”

FIU President Jeanette M. Nuñez announced the police investigation on Thursday after the Floridian Press reported “Miami GOP Secretary’s Group Chat Pushes Antisemitism, ‘Killing [N-word]’” on Wednesday about alleged posts from last year, and The Miami Herald and New York Times followed on Thursday.

“FIU does not and will not tolerate violence, hate, discrimination, harassment, racism or antisemitism,” Nuñez wrote in a statement. “This is not who we are. This is not what FIU stands for.”

Related story: Miami-Dade County Republican Party’s WhatsApp group under criminal investigation after leak alleges racist violent posts

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Local 10 News had not independently verified the group’s leak and was awaiting answers to requests for comment and information.

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