OAKLAND PARK, Fla. – A 28-year-old man who was arrested last month in connection with the brutal beating of a woman in Oakland Park is now facing a first-degree murder charge in connection with a separate case.
According to the Broward Sheriff’s Office, Antonino Santo Romano was recently arrested in Port St. Lucie after beating up a 63-year-old woman who was feeding a feral cat colony outside a McDonald’s in Oakland Park.
Deputies said Romano stole the victim’s purse and her car, a green Mazda 3.
The victim, Maria Salete Ouverney, lost consciousness during the attack and was expected to undergo surgery.
According to authorities, a car belonging to the woman who they believed was killed by Romano was recovered outside the McDonald’s.
BSO spokeswoman Gerdy St. Louis said deputies initially responded to a vandalism call at a home on Northeast 56th Street in Oakland Park just before 8 p.m. Jan. 17.
St. Louis said they later made contact with a woman, who told them her mother, Iliane Alzenord, 60, lived at the home and she had not been able to contact her.
The daughter gave deputies permission to enter the home to conduct a welfare check and they found Alzenord dead inside, St. Louis said.
Authorities have not disclosed how Alzenord was killed or a possible motive.
Romano faces a first-degree murder charge in that case. He also faces charges of attempted felony murder and carjacking without a firearm or weapon in the case involving Ouverney.