FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Broward County Medical Examiner confirms a body found in a wooded area off 196th Avenue Wednesday morning is that of Natalie Belmonte, 43, a local real estate agent missing since Sunday.
The news came a few hours after Belmonte's adopted son appeared in court in connection with her death. Gerard Lopes, 21, is charged with first-degree murder, and at his first appearance, the judge read aloud some of the evidence.
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"The police found blood in the residence, and it appears someone used cleaning products to conceal the blood evidence," said Judge John Hurley.
On Thursday afternoon, crime scene detectives wrapped up their investigative work in the area where Belmonte's body was discovered. At her home, police cars and crime scene tape still littered the street.
Surveillance cameras at the home across the street played a key role in the arrest, according to court records. Police said video shows a shadowy figure loading something into Belmonte's car before dawn Sunday.
"The object that they saw the subject carrying to the back of the vehicle was consistent in size to that of an adult human being," the report said.
Belmonte was a successful real estate agent, a testament, friends say, to her ability to connect with clients. It was a venture in which she welcomed her son, Lopes, who occasionally worked at her office in Weston. But that is a fact friends and colleagues preferred not to speak about Thursday.
"He worked here for a short period of time. He was a nice person with us, and we don't know anything else about him, really," said Belmonte's close friend, Teresa Rodriguez. "We don't want to think about the bad things. We want to think about the good things she's leaving us."
Police have not yet released information about a motive in the killing. Lopes is on suicide watch at the Broward County Jail and is being held with no bond.
Funeral arrangements are still being made, but the community is planning a candlelight vigil in memory of Belmonte. It is planned for Friday at 7 p.m. at the corner of 196th Avenue and Pines Boulevard.