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Palm Aire neighbors mourn slain couple
By Mike Clary
South Florida Sun Sentinel
8:04 PM EDT, July 19, 2009
POMPANO BEACH
A prominent cancer researcher until his retirement 10 years ago, Vincent
Cairoli and his longtime partner Eddie White were best known in their
condo community for being affable, active and helpful.
"The best friends you ever had," Tony Dama, their neighbor at the Palm Aire golf course development, called them.
In the penthouse apartment next door lived Benjamin J. Schwartz, 82,
who had a reputation for being reclusive, quiet and beset with nagging
health problems. "A strange duck," said neighbor Alfred B. Brotter.
On Friday those opposites collided in an explosion of gunfire when
Schwartz apparently used a pistol to shoot and kill Cairoli, 77, and
White, 67, in their apartment, 507, before walking next door to his
unit 506 to take his own life.
"We are all heartbroken," said Dama, 77. "We are all in shock."
Broward Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Dani Moschella said Sunday that
detectives were looking at the case as "a possible double
murder-suicide" as the investigation continues. The Broward Medical
Examiner's Office was expected to rule on the cause of death Monday.
Deputies discovered the bodies in Building 66 of the leafy community
west of Powerline Road after a relative asked authorities to check on
one of the men at 8:38 p.m. The Sheriff's Office did not specify which
man.
But Fred Cairoli, brother of the victim, said Sunday that another
brother who lives in Ocala had been on the phone with Vincent Cairoli
when the shots were fired.
"We are really grieving," said Fred Cairoli, who with his wife, Gloria,
also lives in the Palm Aire community. "I would never have imagined
this."
Until his retirement, Vincent Cairoli was chief of the cancer training
branch at the National Cancer Institute, a division of the U.S.
National Institutes of Health, in Bethesda, Md. With a doctorate in
pharmacology, he helped to administer grants, and was well-known to
physicians and researchers around the world, according to his brother
Fred.
Cairoli and White moved to Pompano Beach about seven years ago after
living in Fort Lauderdale for three years, his brother said.
At the condo, Cairoli served as Building 66's president, representing
other residents at association meetings. He and White were also the men
to see for replacement air-conditioner filters or for refrigerator
repairs. They planned the annual Christmas celebration in the lobby,
looked after the flower beds out front, and often hosted friends for
elaborate dinners in their apartment.
"This place will never be the same without them," said Oscar Acosta,
who with his wife, Maggie Benedeti, recently dined with the couple.
"They took the time to help."
Neighbors said they were not aware of any particular problems between
Schwartz and Cairoli and White. But Brotter said Schwartz was lonely
and increasingly depressed about health problems.
For years he spent four months in the summer with a nephew in
Manhattan, Brotter said, but had recently severed that tie and lived in
Palm Aire year-round. "He did not appear to be violent, but he did have
a problem with anger," said Brotter.
State records show Schwartz held a license to carry a concealed weapon.
Several weeks ago, after one of their last conversations, Brotter said,
he handed Schwartz one of the many cards and posters he has had printed
to promote his philosophy. He is a self-published author of self-help
books.
"Temper," reads the card, with that word written in flame-like red
letters. "Destroys relationships. Justifies violence. Ends trust."
Staff researcher Barbara Hijek contributed to this report.
Mike Clary can be reached at mclary@sunsentinel.com or at 305-810-5007.