GUILTY FL - Bodies of couple, 2 sons found along turnpike, Port St Lucie, 13 Oct 2006

[Trino]

I've just recently relocated to the Treasure Coast area and having been on the Florida Turnpike a few times in the last few months it's almost difficult to convey to someone who's not been on it, just what a remote, desolate length of road it is from Kissimmee to Fort Pierce (~90 miles, IIRC), especially so at night/overnight. (Though should point out, this is a little south of there.) I will say, there are a couple of curiosities, for lack of a better word, at least to my eye.

First is that it is a turnpike, which, despite the solitude, seems like a risky place to commit such a crime since when you get off the road you'll need to give both ticket & money to an attendent. So unless they or the perpetrator had one of those 'Sunpass' tags that allows one through the toll plaza electronically, you'd think an actual human being had to have seen and interacted with this person (and vehicle) not too long after the murders.

The other is the going south aspect. Which seems to mean, as noted above, that killer and victims were in the car together for a good, long stretch of empty road and it was only near where it really does begin to be somewhat populated again did the person responsible commit this horrific act. Why did they wait until then? It sounds impulsive, rather than planned (speculating very freely, of course).

Your analysis is one of the best I've seen.

I wonder why this family was driving at this hour and where they were coming from. Of course, they could have driven from anywhere, but they just moved in June from Brownsville, TX, and relatives are only mentioned as being in Brownsville, so I'm assuming they weren't visiting relatives and probably not making a longer trip to visit friends. The other possibility is FL attractions.

Did they drive from Orlando? It's a two hour drive from there to Port St. Lucie, and if they were killed around 2:00 a.m., they would have left Orlando around midnight - seems late with kids. From Jacksonville it's a four hour drive, meaning they would have left there around 10:00 p.m. Possible.

I also wonder why the family moved from Brownsville. What was the husband's job? The wife's job? What are neighbors saying?

 

[kgeaux]

Something to chew on.... I made this post last night and then deleted it for obvious reasons. I have enough drama in my life and honestly this case has national media attention...which I don't want. I have reported this to LE...

Back in late August I was traveling Northbound in the same area late at night. I make alot of trips on the turnpike between Orlando and West Palm Beach. This particular night it was just me and my daughter. Anyway to make a long story short;...3 guys with a flashing blue light in their car attempted to pull me over. They WERE NOT cops. I called 911 immediately and they were able to catch up with them. I have no idea what happened.

This was in the EXACT same area, the only difference is that I was in the Northbound lane. THere is no exit between Fort Pierce and Yeehaw Junction, which is about 40 miles. After Yeehaw there is no exit for 60 miles. THis is a dark and lonely road late at night.

Something made this family pull over and I get chills down my spine thinking about it. I thought what happened to me was some prank but now I really wonder if there is a connection. It could very well be some type of gang initiation. I suppose it's possible that LE didn't have anything to arrest those guys on that night. I chose to remain anonymus so I cannot get the police report.

Cheeta, maybe you could call LE and remind them about this? You can remain anonymous, but it may be vitally important that LE remember about these men who attempted to pull you over. Any law abiding family would pull over immediately if they thought it was LE trying to get them to pull over!

I'm so glad you are safe.

 

[Cheetah]

Cheeta, maybe you could call LE and remind them about this? You can remain anonymous, but it may be vitally important that LE remember about these men who attempted to pull you over. Any law abiding family would pull over immediately if they thought it was LE trying to get them to pull over!

I'm so glad you are safe.

I called as soon as I heard about this. It was a very scary experience!

 

[Cheetah]

Did they drive from Orlando? It's a two hour drive from there to Port St. Lucie, and if they were killed around 2:00 a.m., they would have left Orlando around midnight - seems late with kids. From Jacksonville it's a four hour drive, meaning they would have left there around 10:00 p.m. Possible.

Disney World and Universal both had halloween events on Thursday that ended at midnight. Universal would be too scary for the kids, so they would have probally been at Disney. Leaving at midnight would have put them in that area around 1:45. Very Possible.

Schools were out here on Thursday and Friday. Not sure about Palm Beach County.

 

[scandi]

Hi Guys,

Cheetah, thank goodness you are one sharp cookie. LOL I've never been to Fl, but driving from Paris France up the Seine River to the North coast where D-Day was, the roads sound very similar, tolls and long vacant stretches before you hit a gas stotion or store.

Trino, I heard an officer give a rundown on that camera near the site where this family was killed, and it is only an 'event' camera, to be turned on if there is a specific reason, and then does not produce a tape. So it is only monitered live by an operator. If it had been on, they would not have been able to go back and look at timely footage of the murder.

The problem is the municipal force that covers design and placement of certain kinds of cameras at certain locations. Toll booths yes, they produce either a tape or disc. Those are areas of car concentrations where robberies could happen and $$'s accumulate, so I can see why they put a different kind of camera there.

I think LE has a lot more info than I thought they would have so soon. The bonus was they know everything about the car as it belongs to the dead family. Bonus. They will find that car, and there will be something that will lead them to the perp. I just have that feeling, as forensics are so astute these days.

By the way, I heard a blurb as I was working last week with a report of the awful crime statistics coming out of Orlando. It was a special report just on that city as the statistics, so must be really bad. A dangerous place to be. The idea of them having just left Disneyworld is a very good one. Excellent Sleuthing Cheetah! Five stars for you LOL *****


Scandi

 

[Cheetah]

Hi Guys,
By the way, I heard a blurb as I was working last week with a report of the awful crime statistics coming out of Orlando. It was a special report just on that city as the statistics, so must be really bad. A dangerous place to be. The idea of them having just left Disneyworld is a very good one. Excellent Sleuthing Cheetah! Five stars for you LOL *****

Scandi

Yes Orlando is very bad. I hate it there!! I'm in the southeast Orlando/Kissimmee area which is still all woods, so I feel safe here.....for now!

My 13 yr old went to the Disney party Thursday, so that's how I knew about it!!

I would like to here more information about where they were coming from. I'm sure their families would have known whether or not they went to Disney.

 

[Beyond Belief]

We may be looking at this in the wrong direction. Its possible, someone hi jacked them in their own area and forced them to drive north to pick up something or somebody, then committed the murder on the way back.

Hopefully the murderer was dumb enough to use the victims cell phone for some personal calls. Between that and finding the car, I have stong hopes the murderer will be located.

 

[PrayersForMaura]

I am sorry for my post. I am editing this because I was getting too personally involved. Sorry!!

 

[Trino]

It would be nice if we could stop the bantering and talk about the case, which is the purpose of this forum.

From what I've read the only families are in Brownsville, TX unless something new has been reported.

It's certainly possible that someone may have taken the family from their home, but with the info about a Disney party, it would seem a good place to take kids that age. If the family was at Disney's party, they may have innocently given someone a ride south. Maybe the perp was familiar with the turnpike and waited for opportunity at an isolated section of the road.

I was hoping with the car description all over the news that someone would have located it by now. There will probably be fingerprints, plus more evidence in that car. For someone to commit a crime of this magnitude, I'll bet he/she/they have an extensive record and prints are on file.

 

[reb]

i'm not backpeddling, and if you want to resort to name-calling and call me ignorant, that's your choice- it doesn't bother me. but if you read the rules you're not supposed to insult people here. and i don't appreciate you putting words in my mouth and accusing me of saying things i didn't say. it's too bad that you're not getting what i'm saying,, at all.

regardless of whether the things i said are or are not stereotypes,, i am only making an observation of the reality i see around me. if you want to keep your head in the sand about it and censor me, that's your choice.

 

[cappuccina]

...maybe some bad dude he turned in was released and turned on him and his family...

 

[PrayersForMaura]

...maybe some bad dude he turned in was released and turned on him and his family...

Good question! I wonder if they have released any personal information about this family. I have not seen much yet.

 

[Beyond Belief]

Ya know, this took place about 20 miles from where we live. And you know what else, I AM SCARED.
Constructive thinking might help, but the potshots on this thread make me want to pack it in and move on.

 

[PrayersForMaura]

Ya know, this took place about 20 miles from where we live. And you know what else, I AM SCARED.
Constructive thinking might help, but the potshots on this thread make me want to pack it in and move on.

Don't be scared! I am praying the authorities will solve this so that the community can rest better. I do feel bad for people living around this area. It must be scary.

I am sorry for my few posts. I am just very sensitive about the Hispanic topic.
I mean no harm to anyone.

 

[Beyond Belief]

I knew that, I just want us to all :blowkiss:

 

[cappuccina]

...that they said it was not a carjacking per se, meaning the dude 'jacked the car to comandeer it and kill the family...

 

[Amraann]

A couple of points.....


Someone above mentioned they would use Sunpass... I doubt whoever did this would us Sunpass as its paid via creditcard. Would be a direct link to place you on the Turnpike that night.
I think a killer has a much better chance paying a person since they see so many everyday they hardly look at anyone.

Someone else metioned above what to do if your getting pulled over and are ot sure if its a cop..
Legally you can drive to the nearest police station or if you have a cell phone call 911.

 

[Trino]

I just read that the mother was born in FL, so maybe she had relatives there. (Maybe we can now move on and get past "illegal" for part of the family.)

 

[2luvmy]

A couple of points.....


Someone above mentioned they would use Sunpass... I doubt whoever did this would us Sunpass as its paid via creditcard. Would be a direct link to place you on the Turnpike that night.
I think a killer has a much better chance paying a person since they see so many everyday they hardly look at anyone.

Someone else metioned above what to do if your getting pulled over and are ot sure if its a cop..
Legally you can drive to the nearest police station or if you have a cell phone call 911.

It is the law that if you are unsure if it is really a police officer pulling you over, you are entitled to drive to the nearest public place and then pull over. If you have a phone, then call 911 and they will be able to tell you if an officer has indeed called your stop in.

We have 2 different men in our city hanging around the local teen eateries that wait until teens leave and then uses a blue light to pull over the teens. One person pulled over a car with 2 boys in it. He made them empty out their pockets, and then had then lay on the ground while he rifled through the car, cussed at them and then told them to get the hell out of there. The second guy pulled over a teen girl and he asked for her license only. When she asked him if he needed her insurance he was like "Oh, yeah, that too". She had the presence of mind to ask why he was pulling her over and he said because she ran a stop sign. The street she was on has no stop signs and she brought it up. He told her to wait a minute and went backto his car and drove away. No incidents have happened since the teens' stories were reported in the paper, but they did address the fact that you have the right to call in before you stop or drive to a public place before you stop. If you are on a long stretch of highway/road you are to put on your emergency lights to indicate you acknowledgement of the police.

Anyway...sorry this is so long.

 

[txsvicki]

We may be looking at this in the wrong direction. Its possible, someone hi jacked them in their own area and forced them to drive north to pick up something or somebody, then committed the murder on the way back.

Hopefully the murderer was dumb enough to use the victims cell phone for some personal calls. Between that and finding the car, I have stong hopes the murderer will be located.

Maybe the family was even taken from their home and forced to go south by some stranger or even a new acquaintance that they didn't know too well yet.