Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Laurie Belishim planned a trip to New York to see her granddaughter’s ball and celebrate Mother’s Day with the family. The 69-year-old survivor died in her neighbor’s apartment on Saturday in Margate. Investigators said it was a murder.
Her roommate, Joseph Misiti, said she left their apartment in the Viewpointe gated community to visit Evan Rosenthal, a neighbor she considered a good friend, around 6 p.m.
Misiti said he went out for a walk with her Chihuahua called “Taco” around 7 p.m. He said that Belishim was smoking outside, so he gave her the dog, and she went back inside. It was the last time he saw her alive.
Officers said she did not come out alive from Rosenthal’s apartment.
“He was a nice guy until he wasn’t a nice guy and now poor Laurie is dead… [Officers said] hit her. “He hit her the hell,” Misiti said, adding that he had known Belishim for more than five decades.
ad
Keith Dorey, Belishim’s son, who lives in New York, said he was told by a detective that she had died of a blow to the head while in Rosenthal’s second-floor apartment at 5510 Lakeside D.
“I don’t know what could have happened that made him hit her so hard or ever,” Doris said.
Rosenthal, who was born in Arizona, has owned a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment in Margate since 1995, according to Broward County property records. Misiti said he and Blesheim have been roommates at Viewpointe for about two years.
“She was just a very likable and lovable person. Doris said she was always very helpful to anyone – although I think she was the one who could possibly use help a lot of the time.”
Court records show that Rosenthal had no criminal record in Broward or Miami-Dade counties. Broward court records show that he was a father who divorced in 2015. Prior to his divorce, a Facebook account showed that he performed with the local rock band known as Project X at various bars and clubs in Broward County.
ad
Rosenthal had a bandage applied to his forehead when deputies booked him into the Broward County main prison on Sunday and when he appeared in court on Monday. Rosenthal faces the charge of murder with a corrupt mind. His attorney general asked Broward Circuit Judge Phoebe Francois for a mental health evaluation.
The grieving son of Belishim asks the public for help so that her funeral can be held in New York and they can also take a Chihuahua called “taco” to be with her family.
“She was a wonderful mother, grandmother, sister, aunt and friend to so many. I wish I had more time, more photos. She wrote my role on the GoFundMe page.”
The case was assigned to Broward Circuit Judge Michael Lynch. Officers ask anyone with information about the murder to call Detective Michael Berryman at 954-972-7111.
ad
Victim’s family
Related social media
12 noon report
location
Copyright 2022 by WPLG Local10.com – All rights reserved.
