PEMBROKE PINES, Fla. – A man who reported his adoptive mother missing three days ago was arrested Wednesday after Pembroke Pines police found a body they believe to be hers.
Pembroke Pines police said Gerard Lopes, 21, also known as Gerard Belmonte, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of his adoptive mother, Natalie Anne Belmonte, 43. Investigators have not said anything about a motive.
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A cadaver dog discovered a woman's body early Wednesday in a marshy area about 50 yards off 196th Avenue. The spot where the body was found was less than a mile from where Belmonte and her son lived.
"We have not yet made positive ID of the body but believe that it may be the body of Natalie Anne Belmonte," said Capt. Dan Rakofsky, of the Pembroke Pines Police Department.
Lopes reported his mother missing Sunday night. He told police he had last seen her when they returned home early Sunday after a family party in Hialeah, and that when he woke up later that morning, she was gone. Police from several agencies conducted a search, which led them to Wednesday's discovery.
The woman's body was taken to the medical examiner's office, where it will be positively identified.
"I don't know why someone would do something to someone so likeable as she was," said Jerry Gilbreath, a friend.
Gilbreath said he had been holding out hope that Belmonte, a real estate agent, would be found alive.
Clues led police to suspect that Lopes knew more about his mother's disappearance. A neighbor's surveillance camera showed a figure loading something into Belmonte's car. The same car was spotted not far from a Dumpster where witnesses said detectives found bloody sheets.
"It's definitely a shock, and especially hearing the news today. All of this has been unreal, as you can imagine," said neighbor Michael Quintana.
Court records show trouble in Lopes' past. After a 2009 arrest on burglary charges, jailers labeled him a "possible violent offender of special concern."
Lopes was released from jail last week after being accused of stealing jewelry from his mother in 2008. Belmonte told prosecutors she wanted to drop the case, saying, "He's been doing very well. He's my son, and I will not prosecute."
Records show Belmonte posted the $1,000 bond for her son.
Family members and friends said they are trying to figure out why a man would kill the one person who they say was on his side.
"The loss of a mother, and her mother and her father, I can only fathom what they're going through. It's got to be horrific," said Gilbreath.
Belmonte's family issued a statement Wednesday evening, saying, "Senseless tragedies remind us to cherish every day."
Pembroke Pines police are trying to find out if anyone saw Belmonte's car, a maroon 2007 Lexus ES 350 , between 5:16 a.m. and 6:45 a.m. Sunday.
A reward of up to $1,000 is being offered for information leading to an arrest in the case. Anyone with information is asked to call Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS (8477).