A 73-year-old grandmother was arrested at Miami International Airport in November 2023 in connection with the death of her former son-in-law. Donna Adelson, 73, was on her way to Vietnam with her husband Harvey Adelson, according to the Associated Press. Her former son-in-law, Dan Markel, a Florida State University law professor, was shot and killed in 2014. Just last week, Donna Adelson's son, oral surgeon Charles Adelson, was convicted on the same first-degree murder charges. Prosecutors said that that Donna and Charles Adelson were both involved in the murder-for-hire plot that led to Markel's death.
At the time of his death, Markel and Donna Adelson’s daughter, Wendi Adelson, had recently gotten divorced and were in the middle of a custody battle. Wendi Adelson and her ex-husband were dealing with a lot of disagreements and challenges, and Wendi Adelson had reportedly told detectives that her brother had made a comment about hiring a hitman, Local10 reported.
He reportedly said that buying her a TV as a gift would be cheaper than hiring a hitman, but Wendi Adelson allegedly told her ex-boyfriend, Jeffrey Lacasse, that she was worried her brother was not actually joking about hiring a hitman.
Wendi Adelson has said that she had no role in the murder of her ex-husband, and she has not been charged in connection to the murder.
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Wendi Adelson had also told detectives that her parents were "very angry at Markel," according to the Associated Press. Charlie Adelson's then-girlfriend, Katherine “Katie” Magbanua, helped connect him with the convicted hitmen that killed Markel.
For a long time, prosecutors believed that Charlie Adelson was not the only family member involved in the murder. Donna Adelson faces charges related to murder, conspiracy, and solicitation, according to WCTV.
