News Americas, PEMBROKE PINES, FL, Thurs. July 21, 2011: The 21-year-old adopted son of a Guyanese-born woman has been charged with her murder in Pembroke Pines, Florida.
Police have arrested Gerard Belmonte and say he will face first-degree murder charges for the murder of realtor, Natalie Lopes-Belmonte. Lopes-Belmonte’s body was found in a marsh near her home.
The 43-year-old had been reported missing since Sunday night was discovered with traumatic injuries, at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday in a wooded area near her home.
It was Gerard who initially reported his mother’s disappearance to police, saying he had not seen her since 2:30 a.m.on July 17th when both returned home from a party.
Lopes-Belmonte had two biological children, a 20-year-old daughter and a 17-year-old son. She adopted Gerard, her first cousin, after the boy’s father — Belmonte’s uncle — died when Gerard was 9. The relationship between the two was reportedly strained. In March 2008, Belmonte pressed charges against Gerard, accusing him of stealing about $20,000 in jewelry and selling it to a second-hand store. According to court records, Gerard, who was 17 at the time, provided a taped confession to authorities admitting to the theft. A court hearing on the grand felony theft charges is still scheduled for Sept. 15.
Belmonte was the head of a self-named real estate brokerage group since 2004.
