Person of interest sought in deaths of 2 brothers, woman

SAN DIEGO -- Police here are searching for an unnamed “person of interest” in the mysterious deaths of two brothers and the girlfriend of one of the brothers.

“I can assure you that if this case can be solved, this case will be solved,” homicide Lt. Mike Hastings said at a brief news conference Friday.

At issue are the deaths of Salvatore Belvedere, 22, and Ilona Flint, 22, who were found mortally wounded by gunshots in the parking lot of a San Diego shopping mall on Dec. 24, and the death of Belvedere’s brother, Gianni, 24.

The body of Gianni Belvedere was found in the trunk of his car last week near a fast-food restaurant in Riverside. A positive identification was made Thursday from fingerprints.

Riverside police have listed his death as a homicide. Hastings released no details about the cause of death and declined to answer questions.

After the bodies of Flint and Salvatore Belvedere were found, San Diego police listed Gianni Belvedere as a missing person. Flint was reportedly engaged to Gianni Belvedere.

Hastings said the person of interest is a man of unknown race, between 5-foot-10 and 6 feet tall, and was wearing tan pants and a black hoodie with white bands on the sleeves on the night of Dec. 24.

A reward of $10,000 is being offered for information leading to an arrest.

Hastings asked reporters to respect the privacy of the Flint and Belvedere families as they struggle “through the grieving process.”

Twitter: @LATsandiego

tony.perry@latimes.com