Florida Nurse Arrested: Disgraced Medic Savagely Murdered Married Lover On Her Birthday

A new report from Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office has noted that 38-year-old Miami resident Rene J. Perez was taken into custody on a warrant charging him with first-degree murder with a deadly weapon and tampering with physical evidence.

The arrest of Florida nurse suspect Perez, confirmed on Tuesday, followed what senior officers described as a painstaking 14‑month investigation.

'After 14 months of working diligently, our detectives from the violent crimes division were able to establish a suspect, obtain an arrest warrant for him and bring him to justice,' Col. Talal Masri said.

Linda Campitelli Murder And The Secret Affair

The pair met up on 28 October 2024 to celebrate Campitelli's birthday. Both were married at the time and, according to a 25-page arrest affidavit obtained by The Post, had been engaged in an affair for around two years after first meeting while working at Wellington Regional Medical Center.

On 27 October 2024, the messages show the two lovers planning a meeting the following evening at around 7:30 pm. Before ending their chat that day, they confirmed those plans again. One message from Campitelli captured both her anticipation and unease about what Perez had promised to do for her birthday.

'I LOVE YOU, I FEEL KINDA WEIRD. I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT TOMORROW. YOU'VE NEVER DONE ANYTHING LIKE THIS FOR ME BEFORE AND I FEEL A LITTLE NERVOUS,' Campitelli wrote, according to court papers.

Perez replied that he was trying to show her his romantic side. 'LOL, IT'S NO BIG DEAL. JUST TRYING TO SHOW U THAT I CAN BE ROMANTIC. IT PROBABLY WONT BE AS GOOD AS WHAT YOUVE DONE FOR ME,' he wrote.

Rene Perez And The Digital Trail

Investigators say the key to the case lay in a web of digital traces. An arrest report sets out how detectives reconstructed Campitelli's final hours using mobile phone records, hospital key‑card logs, GPS and Life360 data, licence-plate recognition hits and surveillance footage.

That digital timeline, they argue, shows a prepaid 'pink' phone linked to Perez moving in step with Campitelli's phone and her Tahoe, from the area of 1397 Medical Park Boulevard, south along U.S.‑441 and then east and south onto Lyons Road, where both the vehicle and her body were eventually found.

A forensic download of Campitelli's iPhone, carried out under warrant on 1 November 2024, revealed months of near‑daily WhatsApp exchanges between her and Perez.

The pair traded intimate photographs, discussed family issues and work problems, and repeatedly arranged to meet in person. In some messages, according to the affidavit, Campitelli vented about having to share Perez's time with his wife.

Rene Perez And The Birthday Night Evidence In Murder Case

The next night, 28 October, a photo taken on Campitelli's phone at 8:12 pm showed the rear of her Tahoe laid out with a birthday blanket and medical 'Ultrasorb' sheets. Detectives later found identical Ultrasorb sheets at Perez's home and noted that he had access to them through his job as a nurse.

From there, the case against the Florida nurse suspect becomes a trail of movements and alleged cover‑ups. Surveillance from Delray Medical Center, where Perez worked, shows him arriving on 28 October and then re‑entering the building that night, before leaving around 12:06 am on 29 October and pausing near an outdoor bin. The recording has a 16‑second motion‑triggered gap at that point, a detail flagged in the affidavit.

Data pulled from the infotainment system and odometer of Perez's Honda Accord indicates the car travelled roughly 20 miles in 33 minutes late that night, in a pattern investigators say lines up with footage of a vehicle matching his heading from the 1397 Medical Park area towards Forest Hill Boulevard and U.S.‑441.

Rene Perez And The Cover Up Attempt

Detectives allege that Perez then tried to erase or muddy his digital footprint. On 13 November 2024, he bought a new Samsung Galaxy S24+ and claimed to have lost his older S23. Store cameras, however, recorded him using the S23 moments before the purchase.

When deputies searched his Honda, they found the AT&T bag and S24+ box in the boot but not the older handset.

A forensic extraction of the S24+ showed Campitelli's number still saved in his contacts. What was missing, investigators say, were the WhatsApp records that mirrored the thousands of messages preserved on Campitelli's phone. In their view, that absence points to deliberate deletion or a failure to transfer data.

Other Irregularities

Detectives also highlight irregularities in Perez's clothing, footwear and other physical evidence. Surveillance shows Perez arriving at Delray Medical Center earlier on 28 October wearing dark, tightly styled shoes.

When he returned to his car at 12:06 am, he was in a different pair of light grey shoes. Those grey shoes were never located during searches of his workplace, his home and his sister's address, according to the affidavit.

Captain Michael Ott of the sheriff's office stressed that, despite the arrest, detectives are still piecing together the full story of what happened to Campitelli on the night she went to meet her lover.

'If there's any further information into Ms Campitelli's death, any other witnesses that were on Lyons Road in that area, we still want to talk to you,' he said. 'Just because an arrest is made doesn't mean the investigation's over.'