GUILTY CA - Gianni, 24, & Sal Belvedere, 22, Ilona Flint, 22, San Diego, 24 Dec 2013 - #2

[jash]

Thanks for the link, Best.
Wow, sounds like all of LE involved did a good job tying evidence together pointing to CM.


DNA Evidence Linked Suspect Mercado to Triple Homicide: Warrant
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...-Carlo-Mercados-Arrest-Warrant-273669701.html


"Analysts also took DNA swabs off the gas cap of Gianni’s car, assuming whoever drove it to Riverside may have had to refuel it along the way."

This is such definite and conclusive evidence!

"The California DOJ worked with the SDPD to transfer evidence in Mercado’s case, including his .22 caliber semi-automatic handgun".

"The SDPD firearms unit examined the gun and compared its shell casings to casings found inside the vehicle where Salvatore and Flint were killed."

"The criminalist discovered Mercado’s gun fired the shots at all three victims, a firearms analyst testified at Mercado's preliminary hearing Tuesday."

BBM

It's crazy to me that CM used a gun that was registered in his name. And that he kept the gun afterwards. He must have been confident that he would never be looked at by police.

I am still trying to make sense of the difference in crime scenes. I wonder if the original plan was to drive the vehicle away from the mall (he presumably had the keys) to hide what had happened. Maybe he realized Ilona had called 911 and panicked and took off.

I hope we learn more about Gianni's car -- was it in that parking lot the entire time? If not, where was it stashed and why was it ultimately moved to that lot? He rigged up a Febreze bottle and got two boxes of baking soda to mask the smell, but left the car in a public place, with Utah plates on, to be found.

 

[tvscum]

I'm curious about how in the world the dark striped sweatshirt found in his home could possibly not be related? :thinking:

They'd used the 'stripe' on the sweatshirt as a key part of the description all along.

If that's NOT what the witnesses said (the ones who supposedly saw him by the car AND the co-workers BF) nor what was seen on video, why wouldn't they have changed that to a solid colour?

Or do they have an entirely different meaning to possibly not related than I must?

They apparently believe the blue striped sweatshirt is a different one than the killer was wearing. Perhaps they showed it to the witnesses and they said it was different. JMO.

Apparently the phone, at least, has not been:



http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...ristmas-Killings-273601641.html#ixzz3CEeojXgp

Which brings a few things that really surprise (confuse) me.



Did he only fire one shot at Sal b/c he hit him with that one shot?

Or why did he shoot only once at him, but apparently Ilona the other 3? Did he miss the other times? Was she his main target? It sort of seems like the latter given they specifically noted him lingering within sight of the shoe store where she worked that night (and obviously he approached her to ask about the location of TK and then also followed her)

Also, I'm wondering if KNSD has it wrong and it was really the driver's side window as everything else has indicated (although maybe everyone else is saying that because of the witnesses actually saying they saw him standing at the driver's side and not the passenger side.

See here for one other station reporting that (driver's side)


And the warrant, among other places also specifically states the witnesses seeing him at least walk away from the driver's side.

Oddly, testimony in court never really clarified which is the case but also indicated likely the driver's side.


As much as they've typically been my preference, KNSD has been increasingly sloppy on details of late. And like Best, they're also the station I have the most contacts at so it makes me very sad to see that having been the case on so many things lately.

In fact, as one of the earlier posts here even shows (and the fact that they didn't just update the article but actually took the entire link down and so it leads nowhere now) they were also the ones saying Ilona had been found in the backseat, NOT in the front seat. Yet the witnesses as testimony in the warrant indicates, clearly state she was found slumped in the passenger seat.

(More coming along these lines but in a separate post)

It was the DRIVER side. Not the passenger side. Sorry, that was a typo on my part above and I can't edit it now. Driver side window was down. The door was opened later by witnesses who called police. The single shot that hit Sal was the only one shot at Sal. That is the casing they believe the killer picked up. Of the other three shots -- the casings were found inside the car -- and they believe one of them missed Ilona and hit the inside the passenger door and also broke the passenger window, which was up.

 

[ezuke]

Hello all, sorry to interject, but I'm hoping that someone who has been following this case closely can help me understanding something.
In reading this thread I came across this quote,
"Prosecutors believe four shots were fired at Sal and Ilona. Three casings were found inside the vehicle, which belonged to Leonard Belvedere, the father of the brothers. Police believe the 4th bullet casing was the single shot at Sal through the passenger window and that casing fell on the pavement outside the vehicle. That casing was never found. Police believe the killer picked up that one casing. They also believe the killer took off with the keys to Sal's (father's) car and Sal's cell phone."

So, am I to believe that it was their father's gun that killed them? How did CM get his father's gun? Did Sal have it and CM took it from him?

 

[colette]

Detective Timothy Norris testified Salvatore had completed a 3-month rehab for heroin addiction, Flint smoked heroin and a drug dealer told police that Gianni had bought heroin from her daily since August 2013. Gianni's alleged heroin habit cost up to $250 a day, Norris testified.

Source: http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...s-Arrest-Warrant-273669701.html#ixzz3CGhfvhFt
Follow us: @nbcsandiego on Twitter | NBCSanDiego on Facebook

Gianni was the one with the $250 a day habit. Flint had less drugs in her system when shot, I think she used but not as much as her boyfriend. I think what happened is this: Gianni goes to pick up Flint but gets abducted by Mercado and later killed. He wants Flint alone waiting for a ride that never shows because he is obsessed with her. Flint thinks Gianni probably over-dosed on drugs and this is why he is not picking her up or answering his phone. She gets Sal to come to her work, throwing a wrench in Mercado's plan. Mercado thought he would get her into his car in the guise of giving her a ride home....Flint and Sal stay in the parking lot trying to call hospitals and Mercado just decides to kill them both since his entire plan fell apart.

 

[jggordo]

Is anyone attending todays hearing. IIRC one of the news reports stated yesterday that Ilona was found in the back seat with a lighter between her legs. Yet the LE statement for the search warrant states she was in the front passenger seat. Wonder which is it?

JMO

 

[geevee]

Is anyone attending todays hearing. IIRC one of the news reports stated yesterday that Ilona was found in the back seat with a lighter between her legs. Yet the LE statement for the search warrant states she was in the front passenger seat. Wonder which is it?

JMO

This article has a link to the search warrant, according to it, Ilona was found in the front passenger seat, not the back:

http://www.cbs8.com/story/26424867/new-information-in-christmas-eve-triple-murder

 

[SDNV]

Is anyone attending todays hearing. IIRC one of the news reports stated yesterday that Ilona was found in the back seat with a lighter between her legs. Yet the LE statement for the search warrant states she was in the front passenger seat. Wonder which is it?

The Affidavit for search warrant (http://ftpcontent.worldnow.com/kfmb/misc/mercado_warrant.pdf) states that she was in the front passenger seat.

The disparity of reporting the "facts" in the media reports yesterday has left me questioning everything they print now. Also, I noticed that they kept frequently "updating" the reports yesterday and adding/removing details. If you have not re-read them since early yesterday afternoon I suggest everyone do so.

 

[kimmypie1]

Hello all, sorry to interject, but I'm hoping that someone who has been following this case closely can help me understanding something.
In reading this thread I came across this quote,
"Prosecutors believe four shots were fired at Sal and Ilona. Three casings were found inside the vehicle, which belonged to Leonard Belvedere, the father of the brothers. Police believe the 4th bullet casing was the single shot at Sal through the passenger window and that casing fell on the pavement outside the vehicle. That casing was never found. Police believe the killer picked up that one casing. They also believe the killer took off with the keys to Sal's (father's) car and Sal's cell phone."

So, am I to believe that it was their father's gun that killed them? How did CM get his father's gun? Did Sal have it and CM took it from him?

The vehicle belonged to their father, not the gun

 

[tvscum]

Hello all, sorry to interject, but I'm hoping that someone who has been following this case closely can help me understanding something.
In reading this thread I came across this quote,
"Prosecutors believe four shots were fired at Sal and Ilona. Three casings were found inside the vehicle, which belonged to Leonard Belvedere, the father of the brothers. Police believe the 4th bullet casing was the single shot at Sal through the passenger window and that casing fell on the pavement outside the vehicle. That casing was never found. Police believe the killer picked up that one casing. They also believe the killer took off with the keys to Sal's (father's) car and Sal's cell phone."

So, am I to believe that it was their father's gun that killed them? How did CM get his father's gun? Did Sal have it and CM took it from him?

The car that Sal and Ilona were killed in belonged to Sal's father. The murder weapon was registered to Mercado. Again, that quote above has a typo. The shooting happened through the DRIVER window.

Is anyone attending todays hearing. IIRC one of the news reports stated yesterday that Ilona was found in the back seat with a lighter between her legs. Yet the LE statement for the search warrant states she was in the front passenger seat. Wonder which is it?

JMO

Front passenger seat for Ilona. The bullet casings were found in the back seat.

 

[thebestinthewest]

I'm not attending but I'm getting updates anytime something relevant happens and when I do get the update I go searching for it online to link on here I messaged Antoinette last night and said "hope you are OK! Regardless of what came out today and or in the future it doesn't take away from the brutality of what happened nor does it justify taking 3 lives. We all have skeletons in our closets and no matter what comes out it won't effect how I feel about you and your family. Let me know if you need anything and stay strong!"...I didn't know what else to say but she did respond and was thankful and I think embarrassed for not knowing and stating in the media "no one is hiding anything" the victims families were not briefed on the details prior to court because of the on going investigation and from what I understand they found out the same way we did except some of the relatives had to have known but didn't share with other members of the family. The brothers were both owners of the restaurant and there was a forensic audit done on their finances nothing was out of place or off. CM lived with his sister and her husband I wonder if they have any prior drug history

 

[thebestinthewest]

What am I, chopped liver? :-/

You better on your roof waiting for my updates via blimps

 

[ezuke]

This whole time I've been reading it wrong!

ty ty

 

[SDNV]

"On Jan. 17, Gianni’s body was discovered in the trunk of his own car in Riverside about an hour and a half north of San Diego County. He, too, had been fatally shot, and his decomposing body was found with his pants and underwear around his ankles and his shirt and sweater pulled over his arms, prosecutors say.

Source: http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...ristmas-Killings-273601641.html#ixzz3CHOnl6eG
Follow us: @nbcsandiego on Twitter | NBCSanDiego on Facebook

BBM - What would motivate the killer to partially remove clothing from the body?

 

[kimmypie1]

"On Jan. 17, Gianni’s body was discovered in the trunk of his own car in Riverside about an hour and a half north of San Diego County. He, too, had been fatally shot, and his decomposing body was found with his pants and underwear around his ankles and his shirt and sweater pulled over his arms, prosecutors say.

Source: http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...ristmas-Killings-273601641.html#ixzz3CHOnl6eG
Follow us: @nbcsandiego on Twitter | NBCSanDiego on Facebook

BBM - What would motivate the killer to partially remove clothing from the body?

Yikes!! that adds an entire new element to this. I don't think I even want to go there

One thing I thought about regarding the febreeze etc is that it was not used to hide the smell of the body once the car was dumped, but I think it was use to hide the smell when CM had the vehicle in his possession. More than likely at the home he shared with his family. IMO

 

[Curious Me]

Ilona couldn't reach Gianni and made a bunch of phone calls. Yet, Gianni's out and about and at 11:00 buys Xanax, then he is on the phone with his Uncle, I guess, at around 11:30. Hadn't he and Ilona talked at all? Then, he isn't heard from and Ilona has to call the family home to get Sal to pick her up.

The confusion for me is supposedly Gianni may have been at the mall, or according to the witnesses someone who looked like him. It seems as though CM or somebody had Gianni under their control by then. I can't make sense out of it yet.


New Details in Christmas Eve Killings
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...ristmas-Killings-273601641.html#ixzz3CHOnl6eG

"Several witnesses told police that they saw a man standing near the victim's car and walk away. Under cross-examination by the defense, Norris testified that those witnesses saw an image of Gianni Belvedere on the news after the shooting and later told police they believed the man they saw walk away from the car was Gianni."

then this

"A drug dealer told investigators that Gianni Belvedere had bought heroin from her daily since August 2013 until the time he disappeared, the detective testified. At 7 p.m. on the night of the shootings, the shooting victim bought two grams of heroin, Norris testified."

"Another drug dealer told police Gianni purchased seven Xanax pills around 11 p.m. that same night."

"Gianni's last call, a 10-minute conversation, was recorded at 11:33 p.m. After 11:43 p.m., there was no other activity on Gianni's phone."

BBM

 

[thebestinthewest]

I missed you!!!!!!! Something weird is going on with the whole thing. I hope the drugs were just a coincidence but who knows :/

It also makes me wonder why in the world CM would bother to take the one casing from the ground. :waitasec:

It's not like there weren't going to be casings in the car plus the bullets in their bodies to be evidence that was just as incriminating as one left outside the car.

I mean, they clearly weren't going anywhere after he shot them and thus the evidence wasn't going anywhere.

Plus, why would he also have gone through the effort of taking both the keys and Sal's phone?

Again, he shot them, they weren't about to drive away. And Ilona's phone was apparently visible, so why not take her phone also?

And shooting 2 people AND taking the time to take the keys and phone after seems awfully risky even having used a silencer. I mean, it's more timing hanging around the car.

PLUS means having to open the door - leaving fingerprints - unless the window was down OR this actually (to them) started out as a possible robbery or car-jacking attempt.

As in, perhaps Ilona and Sal were in the car and she was trying to reach Gianni and/or using drugs (apparently the insinuation of them having specified the lighter between her legs along with the drugs being found?) and CM came up and either acted like he was going to either try to talk to them OR walked up with his gun in hand and basically indicated that he would shoot and then ordered them to hand over the keys and Sal's phone?

That could explain a window possibly being down (if that's the case and why there's confusion over which side they were shot from)

And could explain the keys and phone being gone without CM's prints being on the handle, etc. OR him taking extra time AND the risk of possibly being seen opening the door and taking the keys and phone.

Maybe?

Heck, it could also explain Ilona seemingly possibly having been on the phone with 911 already before she said she thought she'd just been shot. Maybe she was calling about him approaching with a gun? Or even him having seemingly followed her after talking to her in the mall and then appearing by the car as well.

I don't know...

 

[jash]

Have we learned anything about when and where Gianni was killed? Is it more likely that he was alive or dead when put into the trunk?

I was thinking the clothes could have been pulled off while maneuvering the body into the trunk but the pants and underwear around the ankles seems deliberate.

Gianni was thin but tall. It would have been difficult, IMO, for CM alone to get the body into the trunk. Unless the rear seats fold down giving access to the trunk.

 

[Vedder]

"On Jan. 17, Gianni’s body was discovered in the trunk of his own car in Riverside about an hour and a half north of San Diego County. He, too, had been fatally shot, and his decomposing body was found with his pants and underwear around his ankles and his shirt and sweater pulled over his arms, prosecutors say.

Source: http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...ristmas-Killings-273601641.html#ixzz3CHOnl6eG
Follow us: @nbcsandiego on Twitter | NBCSanDiego on Facebook

BBM - What would motivate the killer to partially remove clothing from the body?

There really are no words for this. My heart goes out to the family, especially if they're hearing all of this for the first time.

 

[SDHELPS]

Thanks everyone for working into the late, late hours to keep the information coming in! Just getting caught up and finally read the entire search warrant. I have to note that it's a miracle that LE was able to connect Carlo to this entire tragedy! To think if he wasn't stopped at the border crossing we would probably have never known!

I did hear briefly on the local news that the prelim hearing should wrap up mid afternoon today. That tells me they have enough to go to trial.

I'm also starting to lean a bit more that this was drug related. In the search warrant it is stated:

"At this time I do not know if MERCADO acted alone or if he had other unidentified co-conspirators. I have also yet to identify a motive for the murders."

Page 11

If in fact someone else was involved than I most certainly would lean towards drug involvement. MOO

Search Warrant: http://ftpcontent.worldnow.com/kfmb/misc/mercado_warrant.pdf

 

[tvscum]

Have we learned anything about when and where Gianni was killed? Is it more likely that he was alive or dead when put into the trunk?

I was thinking the clothes could have been pulled off while maneuvering the body into the trunk but the pants and underwear around the ankles seems deliberate.

Gianni was thin but tall. It would have been difficult, IMO, for CM alone to get the body into the trunk. Unless the rear seats fold down giving access to the trunk.

Gianni was shot in the left side of his head, as if he was shot through the driver side window, similar to Sal. But there is a huge pool of blood found on the passenger seat of Gianni's vehicle. The cops think he was shot and the pushed over to the passenger side so his head wound was bleeding on the passenger seat. Then, later he was moved to the trunk. IMO the clothing could have been scrunched up while the body was being moved, but other I have spoken to disagree with me. There is no indication that Gianni was sexually assaulted from what I have heard. Gianni's cell phone was pining around Mission Valley mall between 2328 and 2343 hours, according to the search warrant. Then his phone gets shut off.

Also in court today, prosecutors revealed CM did not own the White Ford Explorer at the time of the murders. He purchased the vehicle on Jan 11 from a RIVERSIDE woman who advertised it on Craigslist. The woman lived four blocks from where Gianni's vehicle/body were found, according to court testimony today.