SEATTLE -- Danny Vega, the Seattle salon owner who was brutally attacked by a group of teenagers almost two weeks ago, died Sunday afternoon after 12 days on life support.
"It's very painful for me to see him in that kind of situation," said Eli Ferrer, who knew Vega for decades. "It's really so hard to lose a friend."
Ferrer was one of about 30 people who gathered to pray for Vega Sunday night at his home, which also served as his salon most his life.
On Nov. 15, Vega, a prominent figure in the city's Filipino American community, was taking an evening walk nearby in Seattle's Rainier Valley neighborhood when three teens attacked him from behind, said police.
They beat Vega unconscious and took his cell phone and keys. Vega was hospitalized with severe injuries to his kidneys, liver and brain. He fell into a coma and was later put on life-support.
James Saarenas, who along with some international students lived in Vega's house, said they were not just praying for peace, but for justice.
"The prayers and vigil will continue while those three people have not been caught," Saarenas said. "We just want to make sure that this will not happen to anybody else."
Family, friends and neighbors also held a vigil for Vega Saturday night at Othello and Martin Luther King Way in the Rainier Valley.
Although police were not investigating the attack as a hate crime, his family believes Vega was targeted. He was openly gay and not afraid to show it.
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