A Florida man accused of killing his married lover after a secret birthday meeting was arrested months after police found the woman’s battered body lying in a roadway.
Palm Beach County investigators say 38-year-old Rene J. Perez was taken into custody March 10 in Miami in connection with the October 2024 death of 35-year-old Linda Campitelli.
Detectives allege the pair had been carrying on a secret relationship for roughly two years while both worked at Wellington Regional Medical Center.
Authorities believe the relationship ended in violence during what was supposed to be a birthday celebration.
Court documents state Campitelli left her home on the night of Oct. 28 wearing a red dress and black heels.
Investigators say she told her husband she planned to meet friends for dinner. Instead, police believe she arranged to meet Perez. The evening ended with a disturbing discovery along Lyons Road in Palm Beach County.
Emergency dispatchers began receiving calls around 10:20 p.m. reporting a woman lying unresponsive in the southbound lanes. One caller alerted authorities that the victim appeared to be “bleeding profusely from the mouth.”
Deputies rushed to the scene and located Campitelli lying in the roadway. First responders pronounced her dead just minutes later at 10:26 p.m.
Investigators documented severe injuries across her body. Medical personnel found four deep lacerations on the right side of her scalp along with bruising across multiple areas.
The medical examiner also discovered a punctured lung and extensive road rash.
Damage to her heels and abrasions across her body led investigators to suspect she had been dragged before being left in the road.
Authorities soon ruled the death a homicide. The Palm Beach County Medical Examiner determined Campitelli died from blunt force trauma to the head and torso.
Detectives began piecing together the victim’s final movements through evidence recovered at the scene.
Campitelli’s iPhone was located near her body and helped investigators confirm her identity.
Police also located a vehicle registered to her husband roughly 50 feet away from the location where her body was found.
Investigators contacted her husband during the early morning hours following the discovery.
Jon Campitelli told detectives his wife had left their home between 7:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. He explained she planned to meet friends for dinner that evening.
Cell phone data reviewed by investigators suggested he remained at home throughout the night.
Detectives then turned their attention to the victim’s communications. Phone records revealed extensive contact between Campitelli and Perez.
Investigators say the two had exchanged messages about meeting that same evening.
Authorities also recovered a photograph stored on Campitelli’s phone that appeared connected to the planned birthday meeting.
The image showed the rear of her vehicle with the seats folded down.
A decorative blanket or tablecloth displayed a message reading “HAPPY BIRTHDAY HOPE YOUR BIRTHDAY IS OUT OF THIS WORLD.”
Investigators also noted the presence of medical absorbent sheets known as Ultrasorbs laid across the vehicle’s cargo area.
Detectives later determined those sheets had been removed before officers arrived at the crime scene.
The discovery raised questions about what may have occurred inside the vehicle before the body was found.
Crime scene investigators reported that blood patterns inside the car suggested a violent struggle had taken place.
The affidavit described the blood spatter evidence as “clearly indicative of a struggle or violent episode.”
Investigators also concluded the vehicle showed signs that an injured person had been transported inside.
Authorities interviewed Perez roughly ten days after the killing. The suspect acknowledged that he and Campitelli had been involved in a romantic relationship.
Perez told detectives the affair began while they were coworkers at Wellington Regional Medical Center. He claimed the relationship had lasted approximately two years.
Perez also attempted to explain his whereabouts on the night of Campitelli’s death.
He told investigators he had canceled their planned birthday meeting because his son had fallen ill.
Detectives examined the suspect’s phone records while reviewing his statement.
Investigators reported they found no messages confirming the cancellation. Additional surveillance footage also challenged the suspect’s timeline.
Authorities believe video evidence shows Perez leaving work at a time that contradicted the explanation he provided to detectives.
Investigators later executed a search of the suspect’s residence. During the search they located the same brand of medical absorbent sheets that had appeared in the photo recovered from Campitelli’s phone.
Officials also confirmed Perez had access to the materials through his employment.
Authorities say Perez worked at Delray Medical Center where those sheets were available.
Detectives concluded the mounting evidence tied Perez to the events surrounding Campitelli’s death.
Palm Beach County authorities later announced the suspect had been arrested in Miami. He was transported to the Palm Beach County Jail following the arrest.
Prosecutors filed several serious charges connected to the case. Perez faces one count of first-degree murder with a deadly weapon. Investigators also charged him with tampering with physical evidence.
The suspect appeared before Judge Donald Hafele in Palm Beach County court the day after his arrest.
Court records show the judge ordered Perez held on a $50,000 bond.
The court also issued restrictions preventing the suspect from contacting Campitelli’s family members.
Judicial records show the case will move forward with additional hearings scheduled. Perez is expected to return to court April 9.
Another case involving medical misconduct surfaced in Wisconsin where a nurse admitted she fabricated claims of sexual assault against a patient.
Authorities say Melissa R. Knutson of Readstown pleaded guilty to misconduct in public office and obstructing an officer.
Prosecutors reported Knutson originally accused the patient of sexual assault after their relationship was discovered.
Investigators later recovered text messages contradicting her story.
Officials say the messages showed Knutson initiated the relationship and warned the patient she would deny everything if authorities learned about it. She later admitted to fabricating the accusations.
District Attorney Kevin Croninger described the case as a serious breach of trust. “The harm caused by Ms. Knutson was deep and significant. Not only did she violate the sacred trust between a patient and a nurse, but she compounded that by falsely accusing the patient of sexual assault,” Croninger stated.
Knutson received an 18-month prison sentence followed by two years of extended supervision.
Another violent case unfolded in Florida last year when a teenager was accused of killing a retired nurse who had allowed him to stay in his home.
Authorities arrested 19-year-old Julian Trevino after investigators discovered the body of 67-year-old John Torneo in his Davenport residence.
Neighbors alerted deputies after noticing Torneo had not been seen for several days. When residents entered the home they found Torneo dead on the floor.
Investigators later tracked Torneo’s credit cards after they were used at local businesses.
Surveillance footage helped authorities locate Trevino driving Torneo’s stolen vehicle.
Deputies spotted the car early one morning and attempted to take the suspect into custody.
Investigators say Trevino fled before crashing the vehicle and attempting to escape on foot.
Deputies captured him moments later. Authorities say Trevino admitted to the killing during questioning.
Investigators allege he broke into Torneo’s home through a bathroom window and hid inside a closet.
When Torneo confronted him, prosecutors say Trevino attacked with a knife and later struck the victim with a wine bottle.
Police later recovered the knife and bottle from a nearby creek where investigators say the suspect discarded the weapons.
Prosecutors charged Trevino with first-degree murder along with numerous additional felonies tied to the attack.
