We have been following the investigation of the murder of Florida State Professor Dan Markel – a case that has cast suspicions on the family of his ex-wife and fellow professor Wendi Adelson. Much of this suspicion has been drawn to Adelson’s brother and that suspicion has been magnified with a new and bizarre disclosure that Charlie Adelson paid for half of a breast enhancement surgery for the girlfriend of one of the accused killers.
Adelson and Markel married in 2006 when she was a third-year law student at the University of Miami and he was a criminal law professor at FSU. News accounts say that Markel returned from a business trip to find the kids and his wife gone with divorce papers left on the bed — the start of a highly acrimonious divorce.
Police say that Garcia and Rivera were “enlisted” to kill Markel in connection with his divorce from Adelson. Police traced a rental to the scene of the crime.
Adelson has gone public with her own account and said that she is being unfairly targeted by sensational media: “He died violently and young, and likely at the hands of a professional killer, and the media had a field day in response. I turned on the TV to find photos of my children with Nancy Grace, George Stephanopoulos saying my name in reference to our ‘acrimonious divorce,’ and a picture my friend took when I was her maid of honor showed as evidence of why I should be treated as a murder suspect, and not the mother of two fatherless boys.”
Police have focused on Charles Adelson, his mother Donna Adelson, and a woman named Katherine Magbanua. Magbanua is the mother of two children with Sigfredo Garcia. Police say that she spoke more than 2,000 times to Garcia in the weeks leading up to the slaying. She also was dated Adelson when Markel was killed and worked at the family’s South Florida dental office.
Prosecutors now say Charlie Adelson paid for half of a $6,000 to $7,000 breast implant surgery done by Dr. Leonard Roudner, also known as “Dr. Boobner.” That surgery occurred notably in October 2014, roughly three months after Markel’s killing. Police sought the medical records despite the insistence of Charlie Adelson’s lawyer that it was “a fishing expedition.” The court did not see it that way and granted the subpoena to confirm the surgery and payments.
The determined investigation has made no secret of the police’s intense suspicions of the Adelson family and particularly Charlie. The direct payment of money to the mother of Garcia’s children is key circumstantial evidence in building a case against the family.
The alleged assassin, Garcia, spoke with his babys’ mama (and Adelson’s current girlfriend) “more than 2,000 times in the weeks leading up to the slaying.” It hardly takes 2,000 phone calls to arrange a murder for hire. Sounds to me like a love triangle. She’s still involved with her old boyfriend, Garcia, while also dating Charlie Adelson for money and boob jobs. The old boyfriend got jealous when he heard that her sugar-daddy, the nerdy Jewish dentist, was paying for a boob job, so he decided to set him up by killing someone that Adelson had the motive to kill, the ex-bro-in-law. The only part I don’t get is how a career criminal and top guy in the Latin Kings would not know to use a disposable phone. Kinda hard to believe that he used his own cell phone which tracked his movements to the murder scene and back. But if the cops think tracking the boob job payments will help build a case against Adelson, I think that could backfire. Proving that Adelson paid for the boob job raises the “jealous Latin lover” defense, which is more plausible than the cop’s theory that Adelson paid for the boob job as compensation for having his girlfriend’s ex-boyfriend commit a hit for him, which really doesn’t make much sense at all……
The old boyfriend got jealous when he heard that her sugar-daddy, the nerdy Jewish dentist, was paying for a boob job, so he decided to set him up by killing someone that Adelson had the motive to kill, the ex-bro-in-law.
The boob job was done three months after the killing. Your Rube Goldberg explanation to clear Charlie Adelson does not explain why Rivera would invest in this scheme (nor would it explain any incriminating communications between Charles Adelson and his mother, which law enforcement do have but have not released).
The only part I don’t get is how a career criminal and top guy in the Latin Kings would not know to use a disposable phone. Kinda hard to believe that he used his own cell phone which tracked his movements to the murder scene and back.
They were tracked by assembling various sorts of electronic data and eyewitness statements. Security camera footage was used to track them in Tallahassee (a city Garcia denied ever having set foot in) and electronic data from the rental car company to track their first (aborted) attempt at visiting Tallahassee and their second successful attempt. IIRC, there was at least one E-Z pass hit as well.
Obviously I haven’t read or heard the “incriminating communications” between C. Adelson & his mother, which “law enforcement do have but have not released.” Have you? If so, please share. And I’m not trying to clear anyone. I don’t know any of these people and had never heard of them before this murder hit the news. I’m stating my assessment of the facts that have been presented to the public. Another news outlet reports that there were actually almost 2,800 phone calls between Garcia and Katherine M., in the weeks before the murder. And her neighbor told the police that they are still very much involved. So Garcia’s jealousy of his girlfriend’s involvement with the rich dentist still seems like a very plausible motive. I don’t know why Rivera would involve himself in Garcia’s business. Maybe that’s what gang members do for each other.
As for a boob jobs, I’ve never had one, but I would imagine that any plastic surgery would be decided upon and planned and scheduled at least three months in advance. I had relatively minor surgery some years ago and it certainly wasn’t a snap decision and was scheduled several months after the decision to go forward.
I think you are on to something. My initial reaction had been, no way are the Adelsons this stupid or sloppy, but especially stupid. They had a clear axe to grind with Dan.
I was thinking Katherine Magbanua may have been sick of Charlie moaning on and on about Dan and wanted more of his attention and found a way to get her ex Sigfredo some cash.
The problem with the “jealous latin lover” argument is why would Sigfredo G put himself in harm’s way to frame Charlie?
Thanks for the link, Squeeky!
You’re welcome! I thought it provided some needed detail.
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
I am impressed that so many criminals happen to be lawyers. A fellow student I helped out turned out to be an arch criminal who got his degree in criminal justice so that he could be a better crook. It seems like this holds true for many lawyers. Then it turns out this woman’s major interest is in defending illegal immigrants who have the same disdain for the rule of law. I wonder if she will still be getting that clerks job for the court. It would be interesting to find out Prof Turley’s view on this. He called for the resignation of the PA Attorney General before she was tried and found guilty on a misdemeanor and was disbarred before that. I think that she should be looking for another job too.
FWIW, Here is a link to a Florida paper on this story:
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/article82210137.html
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
Dr Charlie is a very generous person with family as well as his friends and employees. I know this from personal experience. He has been judged unfairly thru the sensationalism of the media. I’ve known he and his family for many years. They are kind and compassionate people. I’ve worked side by side with his mother for Donna Adelson for 4 years and assisted surgery with Charlie during that time in his office as well as traveling to outside offices. These are not people capable of murder for hire nomatter how much dislike they have for someone. They are kind and caring people.