Sofia Vergara's Brother's Death What Happened to the Star's Sibling?

Sofia Vergara Opens up About Her Late Brother in 'AGT'

Sep. 30 2020, Updated 1:32 p.m. ET

Sofia Vergara is used to having all eyes on her after greater than a decade of luck in Hollywood. Following her first acclaimed English language efficiency with Chasing Papi all the way back in 2003, Sofia has climbed the ranks of the leisure trade with movies via acclaimed directors like Tyler Perry and John Singleton, and solidified her position in our hearts as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett on the hit ABC comedy series, Modern Family.

With her role as Gloria on Modern Family, Sofia accomplished true superstardom as the highest paid actress on tv, then nabbed several subsequent movie roles. Most recently, she’s been serving as a judge on America’s Got Talent along Simon Cowell, Howie Mandel, and Heidi Klum. 

But the road to superstardom hasn’t been a mattress of roses for Sofia, and in a up to date AGT episode, she revisited some painful recollections from her previous after a transferring spoken-word performance that reminded her of the tragic and premature passing of her brother, Rafael.

How did Sofia get her get started in the trade?

One of six kids born to a cattle farmer and his wife, Sofia was once born and raised in Colombia. At the age of 17, she used to be scouted for her first TV industrial for Pepsi, which was once a large hit right through Latin America.

A few years later, Sofia moved to Bogota and started acting and modeling with nice good fortune. Soon, Univision asked her if she would host a travel display primarily based in Miami.

As a young, unmarried mother at the time, Sofia instantly mentioned sure to the alternative, seeing America as an break out from the rising danger of gang-related violence that was around her. 

However, whilst Sofia escaped, her brother Rafael was now not as lucky.

How did Rafael Vergara die?

In 1998, only a few years after Sofia’s transfer to America, her brother Rafael Vergara was murdered in his native land all the way through an attempted kidnapping that escalated. He used to be only 27 at the time. 

Sofia has said that her family was once a well-known and a success family, which made them a goal for kidnapping and extortion. Her brother all the time had bodyguards with him because of this, but on that day in 1998, he decided to pass out without them. While Rafael was out by myself, he was shot useless. 

Sofia recalled the memory of her brother after a touching performance on 'AGT.'

Sofia used to be devastated by means of her brother’s death and it’s clear that the incident nonetheless haunts her. On June 30, 27-year outdated Brandon Leake took the stage to carry out a spoken-word ode to his late sister, Danielle, and the efficiency left Sofia visibly shaken.

After reciting his extremely shifting poem, Brandon were given a status ovation from judges Simon Cowell and Howie Mandel, while Sofia appeared visibly shocked. When Howie spotted Sofia tearing up, she defined that Brandon’s sister died the same yr that her brother Rafael had died. 

“I will feel your pain,” she told Brandon. “I know what it's to have any person taken from you without you knowing.” 

However, Sofia mentioned that listening to Brandon’s poem was an attractive revel in and thanked him for sharing his paintings. Even the ever-crotchety Simon Cowell was moved and told Brandon, “I shouldn’t be judging [Brandon’s efficiency], I just need to compliment you on what you just did as it was once atypical.”

After the episode aired on Tuesday, Sofia tweeted that Brandon’s emotional performance, which earned him a Golden Buzzer from Howie, used to be “a great way to end the night time.”

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