Donna Adelson; Charlie Adelson; Dan Markel.Photo:Miami-Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation; Alicia Devine/Tallahassee Democrat via AP; Florida State University College of Law
Miami-Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation; Alicia Devine/Tallahassee Democrat via AP; Florida State University College of Law
Exactly one week after a wealthy Florida dentist was convicted of killing his sister’s husband, his mother has been arrested in connection with her former son-in-law’s 2014 death.
Adelson and her husband Harvey Adelson, were about to board a flight to Vietnam with a stop in Dubai, State Attorney Jack Campbell told theTallahassee Democrat.
Campbell said the mother’s itinerary will be included in the state’s evidence against her, the newspaper reports.
The arrest came after her son,Charlie Adelson, 47, was found guilty on Nov. 6 of the same crimeshis mother is charged with: first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and solicitation to commit murder.
Donna was arrested sooner than anticipated because she and her husband were leaving the country, Campbell told theTallahassee Democrat.
“That’s what forced our hand,” Campbell told the newspaper. “We started talking to some of our law enforcement partners about the complexities of trying to bring someone back from either Dubai or Vietnam. And that might be a very complicated and lengthy process. So that’s why we had to make a decision quickly.”
Campbell alleges that Donna was fleeing the country and heading to Vietnam because the United States does not have an extradition treaty with the Asian country, theTallahassee Democratreports.
The charges against her stem from the morning of July 18, 2014, when Markel was shot twice in the head at point-blank range after returning to his Tallahassee home from bringing his children to preschool and going to the gym.
He was sitting in his Honda Accord in the garage talking on the phone when he was shot. He was rushed to a local hospital and died 14 hours later.
Deadly Family Feud
During Charlie’s trial, prosecutors argued that Charlie hatched the murder-for-hire plot on behalf of his younger sister, Wendi, who has denied any involvement in the killing and has never been charged.
Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.
After Markel and Wendi divorced, she wanted to move to Miami with their two children to be closer to her family, theAssociated Pressreports.
But a judge said she couldn’t do so without the consent of her ex-husband, who said he didn’t want her to move across the state with the children.
Donna allegedly “hated” her son-in-law, prosecutors said, especially after Markel asked the judge to prevent her from having unsupervised visits with her grandchildren,Law & Crimereports.
Emotions were running high as a result of the custody battle and the fight to relocate, as seen in emails Donna allegedly sent her daughter before Markel’s murder, ABC News'20/20reported.
She allegedly continued, “Let’s show this [expletive] what will make him absolutely miserable. You know his weak points; money, religion, control.”
“You can be a good actress when you want to. I’ve seen you in action. You need to put on the performance of your life! [Markel] hasn’t beaten the Adelson family yet.”
After Markel’s death, Wendi moved with her sons to a house in Miami that was close to her parents, prosecutors said, Law & Crime reports.
Charlie Didn’t Work Alone, Say Prosecutors
Prosecutors argued that Charlie enlisted the help of his then-girlfriend, Katherine “Katie” Magbanua, to hire the father of her children, Sigfredo “Tuto” Garcia, to kill Markel, the AP reports.
Garcia had his longtime friend, Luis “Tato” Rivera, help him, prosecutors said.
Garcia, the suspected triggerman who drove to Tallahassee with Rivera from Miami in a rental vehicle, wasconvictedin 2019 and sentenced to life in prison plus 30 years for conspiracy.
In 2022, Magbanua was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of first-degree murder, conspiracy and solicitation to commit murder.
Her first trial resulted in a hung jury. She is appealing.
Extortion Claims
During the trial, Charlie took the stand, testifying that he had nothing to do with Markel’s murder,WPLGreports.
Charlie and his attorneys argued that his ex-girlfriend and the two men planned the murder without his knowledge and then extorted him over it, WPLG reports.
On the stand, when asked if he would ever take his nephews’ father away from them, Charlie replied, “Never in a million years,” WPLG reports.
Charlie testified that he had no idea who Rivera was before he was arrested, WPLG reports.
He testified that Magbanua told him that her ex-husband and his friend had killed Markel and that he needed to pay more than $300,000 in 48 hours – or else he would be killed, the AP reports.
Charlie faces up to life in prison.
Campbell didn’t immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
It is unclear whether Donna has retained an attorney who can speak on her behalf.
source: people.com
