Details Still Elusive in Gianni Belvedere Case

A family member of a man missing since a Christmas Eve shooting that left two people dead confirmed to NBC 7 that a body found in the trunk of a car in Riverside last week was 24-year-old Gianni Belvedere.

However, police and the Riverside County coroner have not confirmed whether the body is Belvedere.

Belvedere was reported missing after his fiancé, Ilona Flint, 22, and brother, Salvatore Belvedere, 22, were killed in the Macy's Mission Valley parking lot in the early morning hours of Christmas Eve.

On Friday, the Riverside Police Department was called to a strip mall in Riverside because of an odor coming from a car. That's when police found the body of a 24-year-old man.

Monday morning, Lt. Mike Hastings with the San Diego Police Department cleared up some confusion about what agency is investigating which part of the case.

Hastings said because of the jurisdiction, the Riverside Police Department is the lead investigating agency for the case of the body found in the trunk. San Diego police will continue to investigate the double homicide.

The Riverside Sheriff's Department is also now involved in the Riverside case because it will be performing the autopsy, which is scheduled for later this week.

Hastings said he also believes the $10,000 reward the Belvedere family for the safe return of Gianni will soon be a reward for the arrest of a possible suspect. NBC 7 contacted a family member who wasn’t sure of the family’s intentions with the money.

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