The victim, Lucas McCauley, had been out to a club before he was killed, but had no trouble, police said.
By KELLY VIRELLA
Published December 9, 2003
LARGO - Kim McCauley hadn't seen her son Lucas or his car all day, so Sunday night she used her key to check on his garage apartment next door, police said.
Inside, she found the body of her 30-year-old son in the living room, police said.
Largo police said Lucas McCauley died of severe upper body trauma and are investigating his death as a homicide. There were no signs of forced entry to his apartment. Late Monday they had no suspects, said police spokeswoman Lt. Michelle Smith.
Officers found his 2001 Dodge Intrepid early Monday morning, parked across town near Club Z109, a nightclub on Roosevelt Boulevard.
The car's doors were locked and it showed no signs of forced entry, Smith said.
The manager and the co-owner of Club Z109 said McCauley had come there Saturday night, but neither saw McCauley leave. There were about 200 people at the club that night, said manager Mitch Demmons. McCauley had not been involved in any altercations that night, said Demmons and Sally Petersen, the club's co-owner.
Kim McCauley, 49, declined to comment Monday. She found her son at his 1701 Valencia Drive W home about 9 p.m., police said. It appears he may have died late Saturday night or early Sunday morning.
The McCauleys live on a quiet street with neat lawns and small well-maintained houses.
"They were always very quiet," neighbor Bob Spears, 54, said Monday afternoon. "We very rarely saw them, only when they were emptying their trash or picking up their mail."
Crime is rare here, Spears said. The slaying has made him and his wife double-lock their sliding glass door with a bar.
"I don't want to be by myself," said Spear's wife, Jane Steinberg, 44. "But mostly I'm concerned for the well-being and safety of the parents."
Club Z109 had a DJ spinning Top 40 hits and a full house Saturday night. Sunday, when police arrived to question the manager and owners, they were stunned. McCauley had been a regular at the club for six years.
"I still can't even cry or anything," Petersen said Monday afternoon. "It just hasn't soaked in yet."
- Times researcher Cathy Wos contributed to this report.
