Wrestler Jaka, Jonathan Echevarria, dies at 39 after heart attack

Jonathan Echevarria, known to fans as Jaka, has died at 39 after suffering a heart attack last week, the independent wrestling promotion Beyond Wrestling said on social media. The New York native had been hospitalized and placed in intensive care in critical condition after the cardiac episode, his family said, and a GoFundMe campaign was launched to cover mounting medical and related expenses before his death.

Echevarria began his professional career in 2007 and built a reputation on the independent circuit, working regularly for Beyond Wrestling and appearing for promotions including EVOLVE, Full Impact Pro, CHIKARA, CZW, GCW and Wrestling Is Fun. He was a two-time EVOLVE Tag Team Champion with Chris Dickinson and also held tag team titles in FIP and Boca Raton Championship Wrestling with Sean Maluta. He competed at WWE’s WrestleMania Axxess in 2018 and appeared on an episode of AEW Dark Elevation in 2021.

His family, in a message posted when he was hospitalized, described him as “the kind of person who brings laughter and energy wherever he goes. A fun, lovable pain in the butt who means the world to us,” his sister Annette wrote on the fundraiser page. The GoFundMe was...