More than a year after a woman was found dead along a South Florida road, her former nursing colleague has been charged with her murder, according to authorities.
Rene J. Perez was arrested in Miami on Tuesday, March 10, in connection with the killing of Linda Campitelli on October 28, 2024, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release issued the day of his arrest.
Perez, 38, a registered nurse who lives in Hialeah, which is located in Miami-Dade County, is charged with first-degree murder with a deadly weapon and tampering with physical evidence, according to the sheriff’s office.
His public defender did not immediately return a request for comment from Us Weekly on Wednesday, March 11.
Ahead of her death, Campitelli was working as a nurse at Wellington Regional Medical Center, located in Palm Beach County, according to her obituary and court documents obtained by Us. She was 35 when she died.
She was survived by her husband, their two daughters, her parents, two brothers and several other family members, her obituary says.
The evening of October 28, 2024, Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputies were called to a report of an unresponsive woman who was lying face down in the southbound lanes of Lyons Road in Lantana, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The woman, who was ultimately identified as Campitelli, was declared dead after deputies arrived, the affidavit says.
Man Arrested in Murder of Missing Woman Was Last ‘To See Her Alive’
Her body was located not far from an SUV registered to her husband, according to the affidavit, which says the vehicle was still running and had a flat tire with a metal screw “protruding” from the tire.
Detectives on the scene also found dry blood in the road “leading away from the passenger side” of the vehicle “to the victim’s body,” the affidavit says.
The detectives noticed several injuries on Campitelli’s body, including to her head, hands, wrists and heels, according to the affidavit, which notes some of the injuries were “consistent with severe road rash from potentially being dragged.”
Two days later, the Palm Beach County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled Campitelli’s death as a homicide due to “blunt force trauma to the head and torso,” according to the filing.
The affidavit says that during the investigation, detectives learned of a potential romantic relationship between Campitelli and Perez, who she previously worked with at Wellington Regional Medical Center.
The investigators discovered that Campitelli and Perez had regularly communicated with each other through text messages before her death, and that they discussed meeting each other the night Campitelli was killed, according to the affidavit.
Retired Nurse, 67, Stabbed and Killed by Former Roommate, 19
Perez had been working as a nurse at Delray Medical Center at the time, the filing says.
According to the affidavit, Perez was ultimately linked to Campitelli’s death through evidence including a review of cell phone records and location data.
As a result of the investigation, the affidavit says there was enough probable cause to charge Perez in connection with her murder.
Perez has been booked in the Palm Beach County Jail, according to the sheriff’s office.
He was due for his initial court appearance the morning of February 11.
While speaking with WPTV, Campitelli’s mother, Edina Russo, reacted to Perez’s arrest and said, “There’s a million emotions.”
“I’m obviously always sad but there’s a sense of closure,” she added.
