Maui Police: “For This Cold Case, the Evidence is Significant”

Anthony Moreno. PC: courtesy.

Update: (May 28, 2020) 

Maui police say new processing of evidence in a two-decade-old Maui murder cold case is “significant.”

Anthony Moreno was arrested in December 2019 in Florida for the 2000 murder of Kimberly Belluomini at her residence in Kīhei on Maui.

Maui police today shared that items of evidence found at the crime scene were swabbed for DNA and sent to HPD-SIS laboratory for analysis in February 2020.  According to the department, reference DNA samples recovered from Belluomini and obtained from Moreno were sent as well.

The Maui Police Criminal Investigation Division was informed this month that “the DNA recovered from a blood sample from evidence near the decedent, belonged to Belluomini,” according to Maui police.

“In addition, DNA recovered from blood samples from other evidence found at the crime scene, belonged to Moreno.  For this cold case, the evidence is significant,” Maui police said in a press release issued today.

Maui Managing Director Sandy Baz commented on the news today during the Mayor’s afternoon press conference saying, “DNA testing came back of a blood sample of his and of Belluomini (the victim in the case), and this is really a significant change here.  I really want to thank our Maui Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division for investigating this cold case and coming to a conclusion,” said Baz, who noted that Moreno is in Florida awaiting extradition.

Background Information:

A 59-year-old man was arrested in Florida on in December 2019 after a Maui Grand Jury returned an indictment against him for the murder of a woman on Maui nearly two decades prior, according to Maui police.

Arrest records show that Anthony Moreno was taken into custody at 2:58 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2019 at an address in West Palm Beach Florida. Maui police say Moreno was arrested by the Palm Beach Sheriffs Marine Unit for the 2000 murder of Kimberly Belluomini at her residence in Kīhei.

Police say that in October of 2000, Belluomini and Moreno were at Henry’s Bar in Kīhei.  “They went to her apartment at South Point. The following morning, Belluomini was found dead within her
apartment.”

Stacy Ovendale, who worked with Belluomini at the Maui High Performance Computing Center at the time, said she was the one who sent people to Belluomini’s apartment after she didn’t show up for work.  In online communication with Maui Now, Ovendale said she worked in security while Belluomini worked in the accounting department, and the two were good friends.

Ovendale, who remains in contact with Belluomini’s mom and brother, said new technology, additional tests and further review of the case helped.  Ovendale tells Maui Now that she believes Belluomini was unknowingly drugged and that Moreno allegedly jumped into the cab that Belluomini was in without asking.

At the time of the initial investigation, police say Moreno was interviewed as a person of interest in the case however no charges were brought against him.

Since then, Detectives with the Maui Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division continued with the case and were able to successfully bring an indictment against Moreno for a single count of murder in the second degree.

This was the second cold case indictment on Maui in the last quarter of 2019.  In October 2019, a Maui Grand Jury indicted Bernard Brown, charging him with second degree murder in the disappearance of Moreira “Mo” Monsalve in January of 2014.

In the intervening time Moreno had resided in both Texas and more recently Florida, where he was located living on a boat in a Marina in West Palm Beach, according to police.

Moreno was indicted for the murder of Belluomini on Nov. 22, 2019.  His bail is set at $1 million dollars.  Moreno was awaiting extradition proceedings.

Court records show that Moreno was on Maui in the late 90’s and early 2000’s.  He has a list of traffic infractions on Maui, including driving with a suspended or revoked license in 2003, criminal contempt of court and driving while under the influence of an intoxicant in 1997.