Yahoo News Dentist in Cuffs After Mystery Killing of Law Professor
Nearly eight years after a professor was gunned down in his driveway, the murder case took a startling turn Thursday morning when police arrested the victim’s former brother-in-law near Miami.
Dentist Charles Adelson is now the fourth suspect charged in the slaying of his sister’s ex-husband, Dan Markel, which investigators have concluded was part of a murder-for-hire plot. Prosecutors allege that Markel, a law professor at Florida State University, was in the midst of a custody battle with his ex-wife, Wendi Adelson, over the couple’s two children and was ultimately killed in a hit organized by his former brother-in-law to get him out of the way.
Wendi Adelson and her family have consistently denied any involvement in the murder.
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Adelson, 45, has been charged with first degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and solicitation of murder after new audio evidence revealed his alleged role in the plan to kill his sister’s ex.
The incriminating recording was collected by FBI agents when Katherine Magbanua, one of the other charged suspects, met with Adelson at Dolce Vita, a restaurant in Miami, in 2016. But at the time, the poor quality of the audio prevented investigators from understanding the conversation.
The state then enlisted Keith McElveen—who WCTV reports worked for nearly a decade in audio forensics with the CIA— to enhance the quality. Once the tape was cleaned, investigators said they had the evidence they needed to charge Adelson for his alleged complicity in his ex-brother-in-law’s murder.
“A new piece of the puzzle was added, which was the clarified audio of the restaurant recording,” Assistant State Attorney Georgia Cappleman announced following Adelson’s arrest. “This recording includes statements by Charles Adelson which can be heard clearly for the first time.”
Magbanua’s former boyfriend, Sigfredo Garcia, with whom she shares two children, was sentenced to life in prison in 2019 for firing the shot that killed Markel. The Tallahassee Democrat reports that Magbanua and Adelson also once dated and she formerly worked at Adelson’s dentist practice.
Though her trial resulted in a mistrial, prosecutors have alleged that Magbanua is the link between the murdered man, his allegedly culpable family, and the hitmen who fired the fatal shots. Magbanua maintains that she is innocent; her retrial was postponed until May once news of the cleaned audio recording came to light.
Luis Rivera, the second convicted hitman, pleaded guilty in 2016 to second-degree murder, for which he is currently serving a 19-year sentence. The Democrat reports that in 2019, Rivera testified against Garcia, claiming that the pair stalked Markel and followed him home.
“As soon as we pulled in, Garcia jumped out and went behind his car to the driver’s side and shot him,” Rivera testified. “Twice.”
The Democrat also reports that Charlie and his mother, Donna, have been eyed as suspects in the case since the professor was found dead. According to email evidence, the police say Donna was overly concerned about her daughter’s custody agreement and suggested Wendi “coerce” Markel to adjust the arrangement.
Adelson’s attorney, David Oscar Markus, argues that his client’s arrest is meant to deflect from Magbanua’s culpability.
“Charlie is innocent and the prosecutors have no new information that led to this arrest,” Adelson said in a text to The Democrat. “The timing sure does stink, doesn’t it? On the eve of a long-awaited trial of Katie, this move has the smell of desperation.”
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