Tampa Bay briefs

By Times staff writers

© St. Petersburg Times, published January 13, 2001

Channelside Cinemas opens with edgy films

TAMPA -- The city's latest megaplex, Channelside Cinemas at the Channelside retail and entertainment complex downtown, opened its doors to a handful of afternoon moviegoers for the first time Friday.

Channelside is banking on being different than other theaters, advertising "movies outside the mainstream." That means shows more likely to be talked about as films than movies. The nine auditoriums range from 180 to 400 seats, and a 3-D IMAX theatre is expected to open in March. Shops and restaurants are scheduled to open later this year.

Man must pay beaten couple $1.5-million

CLEARWATER -- A Largo man awaiting trial on attempted murder charges must pay a couple almost $1.5-million for nearly beating them to death with a hammer at a condominium in 1998.

Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge George Greer awarded Dale Baum, 67, and Charlene Baum, 66, the money after this week's trial in which he heard testimony about the couple's medical bills and pain and suffering.

Burke attacked the Baums on Oct. 1, 1998, after he became convinced that his neighbors had moved a bench he placed in a commons area in front of his apartment at the Walsingham Condominium, police say.

Rehab center sued over accident that killed man

CLEARWATER -- The son of a man killed in a car accident two years ago is suing Operation PAR, accusing the rehabilitation center of letting the victim leave the center under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

David Castillo, 47, of 240 Skiff Point in Clearwater was hit by a car and killed April 15, 1999, as he tried to cross Roosevelt Boulevard at 60th Street near Largo. Castillo was highly intoxicated when he arrived at the center that night and was admitted, according to Michael Castillo's wrongful death lawsuit filed in Pinellas-Pasco Court on Thursday. An Operation PAR employee gave Castillo 20 milligrams of Valium and then left him alone, the suit says.

Operation PAR officials could not be reached Friday.

2 thieves may face harsher state penalty

TAMPA -- A federal judge handed down maximum sentences Friday to three men involved in the death of New Port Richey widow Jean Schwarzkopf, who was killed in 1997 while being robbed of her diamond ring.

U.S. District Judge Richard A. Lazzara sentenced Anthony Carcione and Ottavio Volpe to life in prison, plus additional 20-year sentences, on charges of using interstate commerce to commit the robbery, fence the diamond and split the proceeds.

The two men may not die in federal prison, however.

Pasco-Pinellas Assistant State Attorney Mike Halkitis said he intends to seek state indictments that could bring death sentences.

Volpe, 42, an illegal Italian immigrant and one-time owner of the La Cosa Nostra Bakery in New Port Richey, befriended Mrs. Schwarzkopf, then targeted her as a wealthy jewelry owner who would make "an easy mark." Volpe pleaded guilty to reduced charges last year and agreed to testify against Carcione.

Carcione, 30, an unemployed Chicago man with a history of violent crime, flew to Florida, then bought duct tape and a bouquet of flowers before knocking on Mrs. Schwarzkopf's door pretending to be a flower deliverer.

A day later, the Topsail Trail woman was found wrapped from head to toe in duct tape and stuffed in a bedroom closet next to an unopened safe.

A medical examiner testified Mrs. Schwarzkopf was severely bruised and suffered a broken neck and broken facial bones. She died "drowning in her own blood" after a clump of red silk flowers was crammed down her throat and duct tape wound around her head.

Lazzara also handed a maximum five-year sentence Friday to Faris "Freddie" Rafidi, a Chicago restaurant owner who helped recruit Carcione for the robbery, then fenced the ring for $30,000.

Carcione, Volpe and Rafidi were ordered to make restitution to the Schwarzkopf family in the amount of $162,500.

Police seek any information about missing Tampa woman

TAMPA -- Police are asking for the public's help in finding a 20-year-old woman who hasn't contacted her family or friends since placing a call from Interstate 275 on Tuesday to say she was having car trouble.

Phiola Jean Patterson of Lutz went to an afternoon class at the University of South Florida's campus in St. Petersburg on Tuesday, said Hillsborough sheriff's spokesman Lt. Rod Reder.

She was in class until 8:10 p.m. She called a friend about 10 p.m. and said she was having trouble with her car, a 1991 dark gray, four-door Saturn with a Florida tag. She was somewhere along Interstate 275, but didn't say where, Reder said.

Nobody has seen or heard from her since. Her car has not been found.

Patterson is 4 feet 11, 103 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes, a dark complexion and a pierced left eyebrow.

Anyone with information can call Crime Stoppers at (800) 873-TIPS (8477) or the Sheriff's Office at (813) 247-8200.

Many who used more water get notices in mail from county

TAMPA -- Hillsborough County this week mailed notices to 18,000 water customers whose usage increased 25 precent or more compared with last year.

Despite intense conservation efforts and a system of fines, county statistics show per capita water use is up.

The letters, mailed by the county water department, suggest saving water by fixing plumbing leaks and faulty irrigation systems, along with adopting conservation measures available on the Internet at www.hillsboroughcounty.org/waterdept/conserve.html.

Clearwater church named one of the nation's best

CLEARWATER -- Warm. Loving. A family.

These are the words members of St. John's Episcopal Church use to describe their church.

They also may be why the 800-member church at 1676 S Belcher Road was named one of the 300 "best of the best" Protestant churches in the country. With the designation, St. John's will be mentioned in the book, Excellent Protestant Congregations: The Guide to Best Places and Practices, scheduled to be published in April.

St. John's is the only Protestant Tampa Bay area congregation mentioned in the book by Paul Wilkes, a professor at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. "When we say the "best of the best,' we mean churches that make a difference in our lives, our communities," Wilkes said. "I call them churches with a soul. These churches are fabulously alive. They are only meant to be a good "sampling' of excellence. We don't want to infer these are the only outstanding parishes and churches in the country."

Besides his associates, Wilkes worked with a panel of 20 scholars, pastors, religion journalists, professors and denominational leaders throughout the country to compile the book. The team also consulted recently published books and religious journals for reports on thriving congregations and parishes.

In selecting the churches, team members looked for diversity, joy, thoughtful worship, emphasis on spirituality and a deep relationship with God -- not just social interaction -- along with proof that a broad section of the members were involved and helped make decisions.

Man in critical condition after mysterious car fire

LARGO -- Firefighters called to a car fire in the parking lot of Largo Middle School on Friday morning saw flames pouring from underneath the hood.

As they unloaded their gear, they spotted something that surprised them. There was a man sitting in the front seat.

He was unconscious, slightly burned and suffering from severe smoke inhalation. Fire crews provided him with advanced life support and summoned a helicopter to carry him to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg.

The man, Gary Wisemandle, 45, of the High Point area then was flown to Shands at the University of Florida, Gainesville, a hospital where patients receive specialized treatment for smoke inhalation. His condition was critical, according to Largo police.

Police and fire investigators said the blaze, which occurred around 2:40 a.m., was accidental and started in the engine area. It was unknown exactly what caused the fire. It also was unknown how Wisemandle ended up in the parking lot and why he didn't escape the blue, two-door 1994 Chevrolet Cavalier.

"They won't know what actually happened until he comes to and they can actually talk to him," said Largo police Lt. Michelle Smith.

Police nab second man in store owner's killing

TAMPA -- Police on the lookout for a man wanted in the New Year's Eve slaying of a convenience store owner followed the suspect into a kindergarten Friday afternoon and arrested him without incident.

Robert Bellamy Miller, 25, was captured at the Meacham Early Childhood Center at about 1:15 p.m. after asking to speak to a friend who worked there.

He was not armed, and most students were not aware of the commotion until after his arrest.

Miller faces a first-degree murder charge in the shooting death of 40-year-old convenience store owner Sissay Belete at his Rainbow Food Place on N 43rd Street. A man police said was an accomplice, 20-year-old Jewel Atkins III, was charged Thursday with first-degree murder and robbery.

Police had searched for Miller for more than a week after a surveillance video at the store captured one of the robbers without his ski mask and a tip identified the man as Miller.

Friday, an anonymous caller told police where they might find Miller, and dozens of deputies and Tampa police officers were sent to the area around 34th Avenue and 26th Street.

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