Palm Beach County authorities have arrested a 38-year-old registered nurse in connection with the October 2024 killing of Linda Campitelli, whose body was discovered on a Lake Worth roadway. Rene J. Perez of Hialeah was taken into custody in Miami on March 10, 2026, and is currently being held without bond on charges of first-degree murder with a deadly weapon and tampering with physical evidence.
Campitelli, a 35-year-old married mother of two and a PACU nurse at Wellington Regional Medical Center, died from severe blunt force trauma and a lacerated lung. Court documents unsealed following Perez’s March 11 court appearance detail a 17-month investigation that utilized cellphone data, surveillance footage, and digital correspondence to link Perez to the scene of the crime.
According to the probable cause affidavit, Campitelli and Perez were engaged in a secret romantic relationship for approximately two years prior to her death. On the night of October 28, 2024, the two planned a belated birthday meeting. Digital forensic investigators recovered WhatsApp messages sent by Campitelli that evening stating, “I FEEL A LITTLE NERVOUS. YOU’VE NEVER DONE ANYTHING LIKE THIS FOR ME BEFORE.” Perez responded in the text thread that his intentions were simply to be “romantic.”
Campitelli was later found unresponsive approximately 50 feet from her Chevy Tahoe on Lyons Road. The medical examiner determined her injuries included road rash, indicating she had been dragged. During the initial inquiry, Perez told detectives he had canceled their plans that night. However, investigators noted that cellular network data and communication logs showed no evidence of a cancellation.
Physical and digital evidence gathered over the subsequent year and a half contradicted Perez’s timeline. Detectives obtained surveillance footage tracking Campitelli’s vehicle to a building in Wellington where Perez was previously employed. Inside the vehicle, investigators recovered Campitelli’s bloodstained Apple Watch from the center console. Additionally, authorities extracted a photograph from an iPhone showing a “Happy Birthday” blanket positioned alongside hospital-grade Ultrasorbs Medical Sheets in the backseat of her car.
If convicted, Perez faces life in prison or the death penalty. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office has not announced any further suspects in the ongoing prosecution.