GUILTY CA - Gianni, 24, & Sal Belvedere, 22, Ilona Flint, 22, San Diego, 24 Dec 2013 - #3

[Curious Me]

Yes. What's that about? CM pleads not guilty and his attorney says he has no connections to the people killed, but we know his gun does. He's so uninvolved, and yet tries to commit suicide immediately upon arrest. Did he know that the safest place for him was in the psyche ward of the jail? There's hits done in jails and prisons, as well.

This is one of the few cases where I have no firm opinion on what the motive must've been. There's possibilities from all kinds of angles, some we can't discuss yet, but it is enough to make me a basket case.

Basket case? Where does that saying come from anyways?

song by GREEN DAY
Do you have the time to listen to me whine
About nothing and everything all at once?
I am one of those melodramatic fools
Neurotic to the bone, no doubt about it

Sometimes I give myself the creeps
Sometimes my mind plays tricks on me
It all keeps adding up, I think I'm cracking up...

Read more: Green Day - Basket Case Lyrics | MetroLyrics

 

[nikb]

Some of the best "dealers" are in the food/beverage business. A "customer" can pre-arrange the product with let's say a bartender. They come to the bar and order a drink or run a tab. When they pay, they "tip" very heavily. The "tip" goes into the "tip" jar. The "product" is then slipped into a cocktail napkin or box of matches and slid to the customer. No muss, no fuss. With this type of deal the "customer" can even pay with a credit card. The dealer does not expose their home location or any record of actually handing the customer the product. The same or similar scenario is true with restaurants, etc. A pizza place that delivers can even make deliveries.

JMO

Wow this totally makes sense when it comes to a recent restaurant experience I had. Everyone in the place seemed like they were either high on something or coming down from something. I remember saying something to my husband about us being in the Twilight Zone. Getting back to Gianni and Ilona in particular, it does seem hard to believe that family/friends wouldn't realize something was 'off' with their behavior if they were doing that many drugs. I mean if I could see it so obviously in people I'd never even met before, surely family/friends would see it (unless they were avoiding friends/family, but it doesn't sound like that was the case).

I don't know if it would even help but I kind of wish we knew who the main target was, if there was one. It seems like it might help with drawing a connection (if there is one) between CM and the primary target. Unless the target really was just all 3 of them, which I guess would in essence mean the whole Belvedere family.

 

[TravelingBug]

:welcome5: QueenBofOB :greetings:

Are you really the queen of Ocean Beach? Impressive. :smile:

OB is remarkably well represented in just names alone! We've got OBMama too

 

[TravelingBug]

Omg. This whole time I thought you were an obstetrician. I feel dumb, lol.

Every time I scroll too quickly I skip the M to start Mama and think she's Obama. LOL :crazy:

 

[nikb]

Every time I scroll too quickly I skip the M to start Mama and think she's Obama. LOL :crazy:

Oh my gosh me too. Obmama you actually force me to slow down when reading the forums which is probably a good thing.

 

[SDNV]

Not knowing his connection to the Belvederes, I'm leaning toward gang affiliation, which would explain possible ties in Riverside, perhaps even his hometown of Hayward, which may be behind his relocation to San Diego.

Cases like this shock neighbors, friends and associates . . . usually one or two come out of the woodwork and do a news interview for their 15 minutes of fame. His presumed attempted suicide, and subsequent isolation, may be an indication his life is in danger if he talks. I keep thinking back to the border patrol agent who expressed concern about Carlo's emotional state, and called his relatives to check on their well-being and Carlo's.

I can't comprehend why he was driving with an illegal firearm in plain site, and another that is connected to 3 murders, the day after Gianni's body was discoverd. At 3:45 a.m. he said he was driving to a shooting range in San Bernadino. I found 3 in SB, they don't open til 9 or 10 a.m., and he's on the wrong freeway.

I can't get over this either. Was he just too dumb to put the weapons in the back of the SUV and disguise them somehow, or was he still so mentally affected from having killed three people that he was just not thinking straight? Unless he is a psychopath, murdering three people would have cause of adverse effects on his mental state IMO.

Seems something scared the crap outta him and he was getting outta Dodge. Did someone else park Gianni's car in the shopping center? It's doubtful it sat there for 3 weeks. Maybe the plan was to dump it in the desert and burn the evidence, but someone panicked and things didn't go according to plan.

I would like to know what else was in the Explorer when they arrested him at the checkpoint. If it was full of clothes and other personal belongings he may very well have been going back to Hayward to put distance between himself and the crime.

BTW Obmama: I thoroughly enjoy reading your analysis.

 

[SDNV]

Like I've said before, no judgments, I'm just voicing some thoughts.

I personally don't know much about heroin, and the differences between smoking it, snorting it, or shooting it up.

I have been reading some of the druggie forums and from my limited education from them it seems that smoking heroine is somewhat safer that injecting. However, when you start adding other drugs to the mix it can be very risky.

Always thought people nodded off after doing their heroin, especially if they didn't combine it with an upper like cocaine.

I found some examples of people that were able to function while using, but it was much lower amounts than was reported in this case. And, like I said above, when someone starts mixing other drugs and alcohol things can become unpredictable.

Not that I want to take anybody's drug inventory when I meet them, but sometimes it's good to know what to look for in the people who cross our paths --- be it strangers or family members.

Went to a few drug discussion boards trying to educate myself, and it seems not everybody nods off.

This is also true from what I have been reading. Some just use enough to get "well" which is to stop withdrawal symptoms. They are not using enough to also get "high."

Still, I'd think it'd be a constant fluctuation of energy and moods --- of having enough or needing to get more --- making for a poor employee, roommate, or financial fiduciary.

But, from what I can gather, people don't always nod off and some say they do it occasionally which I didn't think was possible.
Might I add, more young people are doing it than I realized. It's out there all over the place!

From what I have been reading, many wanted to just experiment with H while telling themselves that they are in control and won't let it get out of hand. They even set rules for the selves like they will use only on weekends etc. As you can guess, those rules are quickly broken and another addicted user has been born.

 

[Curious Me]

...snipped...
From what I have been reading, many wanted to just experiment with H while telling themselves that they are in control and won't let it get out of hand. They even set rules for the selves like they will use only on weekends etc. As you can guess, those rules are quickly broken and another addicted user has been born.

Yes, and then some eventually complain they keep buying it and spending all that money, but they can't even actually feel the rush or the high anymore. They only feel horrible, wretched, awful if they don't get some. Yikes!

 

[SDNV]

Yes, and then some eventually complain they keep buying it and spending all that money, but they can't even actually feel the rush or the high anymore. They only feel horrible, wretched, awful if they don't get some. Yikes!

For the reported amount of $250/day, and assuming that was between Gianni and Ilona, that is still a lot of heroin. Combine that cost with the other drugs that were in his system when found and they were spending a lot of money on drugs. IMO they would be at a high point (or low point depending on how you look at it) if they were using it all between themselves. Whether they were also dealers themselves is unknown.

 

[nikb]

Shoot... I can figure out quote but not multi-quote with the site changes so I'm sorry to not quote. But real quick I wanted to add some thoughts:

- The guy I mentioned earlier was HEAVY into drugs before it was noticeable. He couldn't understand why he would sometimes nod out (painkillers supposedly, not H, but I wonder...).

- Yep - I think it's pretty common to get hooked enough that someone will use just to be functional. Hard to imagine but not impossible. I still keep wondering if they were 'stocking up' for the holiday weekend.

- Weekends only... right. Pretty soon the weekend becomes Thursday to Sunday and Monday you use again because it's a 'recovery' day. And then hell it's almost almost Thursday again so what would it hurt?

I don't know much about heroin, MJ, etc. but do have some experience with addiction and it can play some serious tricks on someone's mind. Again also no idea if they were involved with drugs, but so far it seems like the likeliest explanation to me. It's incredibly sad regardless.

 

[Curious Me]

For the reported amount of $250/day, and assuming that was between Gianni and Ilona, that is still a lot of heroin. Combine that cost with the other drugs that were in his system when found and they were spending a lot of money on drugs. IMO they would be at a high point (or low point depending on how you look at it) if they were using it all between themselves. Whether they were also dealers themselves is unknown.

Could be, if they were dealing then it might've been a bigger operation that threatened somebody else's territory. A message? Or it could be those runs to CV were to pick up amounts shared with others that worked at the restaurant. Heck, I feel like there's something more that is bigger information that we don't know about yet. Three young people losing their lives like they did is tragic.

 

[thebestinthewest]

Updates! I have been in constant contact with Gianni and Sal's sister and we keep in touch weekly just to see what the other one is up to. When I gave her the heads up on the warrants she was in utter shock because the victims families had not seen the warrants and had no clue they were being released. The families do not follow the media and for good reason she saw some nasty and mean comments people posted. According to the sister Sal was not in rehab/detox right before the killings he was in fact in Oregon with his sister because the restaurant purchase was getting finalized so there was no work for him down here and his sister in Oregon had work he could help her with. Sal did dabble in drugs in 2012 for a short time but he solely made the choice to stop and told his parents his parents everything and he entered out-patient rehab locally where he was prescribed Suboxone and he even successfully stopped Suboxone before the murders. The family had no idea about Gianni and Ilona being on drugs until it came out in court. Gianni and Ilona did not act like drug users according to the family there were not any signs and it was even more shocking because the 3 victims were homebodies. I am working on updating the justice4sd3 website to clarify the misinformation and once the families get the approval from the DA I will arrange to release a statement to the media. It should be noted that preliminary hearings do not have all of the information and things change from day to day during the discovery process. I have a reliable contact who has been interviewing the DA and information she acquires is pretty vague but useful none the less. According to her Gianni's 250 a day drug habit is believed to be exaggerated by the source who made the claims.

I will update more after I get caught up on what i missed on the thread

 

[thebestinthewest]

According to a few sources the motive the prosecution will be going for is: "Drugs were not involved and Mercado was a wannabe hitman"

IMO I still think he is crazy and delusional like if myspace was still relevant he and the movie theater shooter in CO would for sure be on each other's top 8.

 

[tvscum]

I am surprised nothing drug related was found during the searches of CM's car and house. For that reason, I am not convinced the murders are directly tied to drugs.

Whatever the motive, it seemed personal. I wonder who CM was close to. Maybe he felt G/S/I wronged someone he loved and it was about revenge.

Thinking out loud here... I wonder if LE was able to determine when exactly CM entered "R.I.P." on his phone's calendar. Also, does that mean Gianni wasn't killed when his phone conversation was interrupted (i.e. in the final minutes of December 23rd)?

If Gianni or Illona were the targets, CM must not have known their full names, IMO. Otherwise, he would have checked out their photos on Facebook. There was no trace or connection to the victims on his computer, apparently.

Maybe CM wanted to kidnap Ilona and he planned to take out Gianni first. Sal shows up and CM demands his keys so he can kidnap Ilona. When she starts dialing 911, he has to kill her on the spur of the moment.

What if the RIP only applies to Ilona because that's the person CM was stalking?

JMO.

 

[geevee]

Granted anything is 'possible', but could it be likely that LE has figured out a motive for the killings but do not want to reveal it until trial (so the defense doesn't have the time between now and trial to disspel it)?

The only thing that makes sense (to me) of him killing all of them would be if he did have a crush on Ilona and he blamed the boys for corrupting her with drugs (if he were stalking her and they used that parking lot for buys and such he'd be able to figure that out), and maybe decided she had to die as well because she was an addict and not pure enough for him, even though he still crushed on her. Otherwise, unless there's someone else involved that hasn't been brought out yet, I still can't figure any reason for all of them being killed.

 

[GinaSeikwa]

I would say it IS highly likely drugs are involved. And money. Lots of money probably. It's interesting how this was all seemingly well know by friends and other insiders way back at the beginning but all of a sudden they are homebodies. What a tangled web indeed. I'm pretty confident that LE has it all under control though. Should be interesting what else comes out.

 

[jggordo]

What has happened with the remaining search warrants? I thought they would have published by now.

JMO

 

[kimmypie1]

I just want to comment on the "homebodies" part mentioned by the sister. That to me doesn't mean that they weren't using. If anything it more solidifies it. They would want to lounge around and stay in their rooms if they were high on H.

 

[thebestinthewest]

If Gianni was at the mall during his conversation with cousin/uncle, why wasn't he answering Ilona's calls to pick her up? She finally called Sal to come get her, then called hospitals and at least one jail looking for him but the cousin/uncle thought Gianni was at the mall to pick her up when they were talking and then interrupted/disconnected - so why wasn't Gianni answering any of Ilona's calls?

The phone was shut off after he lost contact with Mario in one of the warrants a woman said a private number called her and hung up and somehow Sal received a text after the shootings I think he used the phone to lure them after shooting Gianni and he probably used the app Caller ID faker I use it to troll my friends you can call any number from any number. I wonder how late tilted kilt was open and buffalo wild wings I remember the mall being open late I just don't remember which stores and how late

 

[obmama]

Granted anything is 'possible', but could it be likely that LE has figured out a motive for the killings but do not want to reveal it until trial (so the defense doesn't have the time between now and trial to disspel it)?

Absolutely. The warrants were very explicit with regard to compromising the investigation, should the contents become public knowledge. Why CBS 8 chose to release a select few may be at the request of LE, perhaps to see WHO goes to the trouble to visit the court records department and pay to view/copy them. Or, as has been suggested, the content was repetitive or too personally revealing of innocent parties, i.e., Belvedere family bank records. I'm inclined to believe they contain details of items found or disclosed in conversations, like those of Nuno and Feller, that are being withheld to preserve the integrity of this case.

Thank you West for your "insider views". I will interpret the sister's confidence in sharing personal matters with you, as an outlet to express herself to a trustworthy source who will not vilify the victims' families.