A Miami real estate mogul accused of poisoning his wife with fentanyl was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in his lavish mansion Tuesday during an FBI raid linked to an ongoing investigation into a murder-for-hire plot to kill her.
A SWAT team discovered the body of Sergio Pino, 67, in an upstairs bedroom of his multimillion-dollar home in a posh gated community in Coral Gables Tuesday morning while recovering electronics, safes and three boxes of documents, law enforcement sources said. told WPLG.
The major real estate developer allegedly poisoned Tatiana Pino, his ex-wife of 32 years, multiple times with fentanyl, she claimed during their divorce proceedings — and was under investigation for paying people to try to have her killed.
Pino’s lawyer, Sam Rabin, confirmed that he committed suicide and criticized the police’s handling of the situation.
“Sergio Pino committed suicide today. The level of law enforcement activity at his home was unprecedented and unnecessary, especially since we had offered to turn him over if necessary,” he told WPLG.
“Today’s events mark a very tragic end to an investigation that we were confident we could successfully defend,” Rabin continued.
“There were a lot of rumors and allegations, but what was lacking was evidence.”
Tatiana claimed she suffered from breathing problems and other symptoms in 2022, and that a doctor at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore detected fentanyl in her system after she was intubated six times.
She believes her husband was sneaking the deadly opioid into her mouth. Tatiana suggested that Sergio, the founder of Century Homebuilders Group, had a “financial motive” for poisoning her.
She filed for divorce in April 2022.
Last month, the FBI raided Pino’s Cocoplum estate and Coral Gables office as part of an investigation into threats made against Tatiana’s life.
Pino allegedly recruited a part-time worker on his yacht, Bayron Bennett, to hire three men to threaten his wife after she filed for divorce, sources familiar with the matter told the Miami Herald.
Bennet and the three men were charged in federal court in Miami with an attempted hit-and-run at his Pinecrest home and arson against three of his sister’s vehicles.
Security footage shows Tatiana pulling into her driveway in August 2023 as a flatbed truck rented by Home Depot parked nearby came from behind and slammed into the passenger side of her SUV before driving away, WPLG reported.
Pino was never charged with any crime before his death.
“In this already complex divorce, we have had to deal with terrorism and attacks on Tatiana’s life. It’s really terrible,” Tatiana Pino’s lawyer, Raymond J. Rafool, told the outlet on Tuesday.
“Fortunately, the FBI is involved and working hard to keep Tatiana safe and bring those responsible to justice.”
Pino’s attorney, Deanna Shifrin, said in a statement that there was “no indication that he ever hurt or intended to hurt” his wife.
“I believe the combination of an unnecessarily destructive divorce and selective and salacious media coverage humiliated him and led to this tragedy,” she said.
