Update:
Just before midnight, the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office received a call of a shooting in Countryside Mobile Home Park, 8775 20th Street. Arriving deputies and fire rescue personnel located Samuel Tesci (18) deceased near Lot 11 with a fatal gunshot wound. Anthony Cavil (18), Latravious Rivers (19), and Roberto Santos (18) all of Vero Beach, were detained as part of the investigation. Detectives have since learned that Tesci, Cavil, Rivers, and Santos rented a hotel room at the Vero Beach Hotel in the afternoon hours of July 13th. Together, they planned to order one pound of marijuana from Dominic Coppola (21) of Vero Beach, and rob him of the marijuana upon delivery. The drug deal was slated to occur at Lot 11 in Countryside Mobile Home Park, as it gave them easy access to rob Coppola and flee a short distance to their hotel room at Vero Beach Hotel.
When Coppola arrived, a struggle ensued at which time Coppola pulled a gun and fired several shots, one which struck Tesci. All parties fled the scene, leaving the pound of marijuana and Tesci behind. When the group gathered at the hotel room and realized Tesci didn’t make it back, they walked back to the scene and found him deceased. After approximately one hour, they decided to call law enforcement. The three were taken to the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office and interviewed by Detectives Michael Dilks and Chris Lester where these details were obtained.
Coppola’s truck was recovered and seized to be searched pending application for a search warrant. Detectives have been in contact with Coppola who has agreed to turn himself in. At this time, Cavil, Rivers, and Santos have been arrested and charged with 2nd degree felony murder, as the incident occurred during an attempted robbery. Cavil, Rivers, and Santos will face first appearance hearings in the morning, where bond will be determined. They are currently being held at the Indian River County Jail. Indian River County Sheriff Deryl Loar stated, “Our detectives have been out all night working this homicide case. Because of their hard work, three of four individuals responsible for this death are behind bars this afternoon. The fourth person involved has agreed to surrender to our detectives and will be in custody soon.”
NEWS RELEASE
At approximately 10:00 PM last night, deputies responded to the Indian River Medical Center where a gunshot victim was brought to the hospital by his girlfriend. A 19 year old black male had two gunshot wounds to the lower half of his body, claiming he was shot while walking in Gifford. Deputies canvassed the area where the shooting was alleged to have happened but have yet to locate any evidence associated with the case. As detectives pressed for more information about the shooting, the victim later became uncooperative.Just before midnight, the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office received a call of a shooting in Countryside Mobile Home Park, 8775 20th Street. Arriving deputies and fire rescue personnel located an 18 year old white male with a fatal gunshot wound near a pond. Deputies believe the incident may have started at the Vero Beach Hotel in the 8700 block of State Road 60, crossing into Countryside. A large quantity of marijuana was located near the deceased and three black males were observed fleeing in the direction of the hotel. Three witnesses were detained and interviewed as part of the investigation.
Indian River County Sheriff Deryl Loar stated, “Last night was another busy evening for our deputies, detectives, and 9-1-1 operators. Overnight, detectives have continued to follow leads on both cases in an attempt to locate and arrest those responsible for these shootings. As we continue to gather evidence in these cases, we will seek justice for the victims. At this time, it does not appear that these two shootings are related. Again, we see drug related incidents turn deadly despite those who claim otherwise.”
Indian River Guardian 