User blog:UnderAPineapple/Hurricane Pineapple 9: Pain & Gain

People are driven by many things, such as, family, trustworthy friends, and money. But being married to the money can sometimes lead to destructive tendencies, and once again, sometimes it can be a motive for murder. A couple weeks ago, I discussed the case of Tiffany Cole, a woman who murdered two elderly civilians for their retirement income. If that case did not show you how much people take money too seriously, than I believe this case will. We discuss a murder case so bizarre, that even Michael Bay could not resist making a film off of it. Pain & Gain is the story of how a gang of musclemen took over Miami, Florida, and caused many wealthy businessmen and women to be sleeping with one eye open. Let’s brace for Hurricane season.

Hurricane Pineapple Intro: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3DwJMhWdkY

Introduction
Meet Frank Griga, a 32-year old wealthy businessman from none other than Miami, Florida. Frank was an immigrant who went from Hungary to the United States with only $10 in his pocket, and his family members by his side. He immigrated in the 1980’s and within less than a decade, he was living in Miami in a town called Golden Beach and was the founder of a successful phone sex hotline, with now over $1,000,000 in his pocket. He also had a beautiful girlfriend, 23-year old Krisztina Furton, who would accompany him on business trips, vacations, and even trips back to Hungary to see his family members. Frank was the epitome of going from “nothing to something”, and it seemed like he was invincible. With a lovely house, a loving family, an amazing partner, and a boatload of cash, what could possibly go wrong?

Things took a turn for the worse after a while, and it started on May 23, 1995. Frank was receiving repeated calls via his sister, Suzanna, who wanted to go to brunch with him. However, Frank did not respond and after several hours of calling both Frank and Krisztina, Suzanna planned to file a Missing Persons Report. This is uncommon for police to respond to a disappearance in Miami, as usually a dead body would show up within hours of any murder occurring, but there was no body found. Frank and Krisztina were missing, and their whereabouts were unknown.

Initially, police alerted Suzanna that it was most likely that Frank and Krisztina would be found alive and well. Two days prior, Frank had let Suzanna know about attending a vacation with Krisztina in the Bahamas. However, Frank’s Lamborghini Diablo SE30 was found in a secluded location in the woods. It was a little later on, that police ended up finding the bodies of two civilians in a swamp near the location of Frank’s Lamborghini. Inside the barrels were the mutilated bodies of Frank Griga and Krisztina Furton. It was confirmed that they had died only 24 hours before being discovered.

==About the Perpetrators= Now that the bodies have been confirmed to be that of 32-year old Frank and 23-year old Krisztina, a homicide investigation quickly ensued. But how were the police able to find out the perpetrators of this horrendous homicide? A next door neighbor reported to police of something that caught his attention. On the late hours of May 22, he saw the same Lamborghini Diablo SE30 parked outside his neighbor’s residence. Frank & Krisztina were exiting the car, and one man who had a Golden Mercedes was parked right next to them. He was staying at the residence and let Krisztina & Frank into the house to apparently discuss a business trade. The man who let the two of them in, was Daniel Lugo.

Daniel Lugo was born on April 6, 1963 in New York, City, New York. Police discovered that Daniel was an ex-convict who was previously released in 1993 after spending a year in prison for running a business scam operation. He was 6’1” and was 32 years old, and was known to frequent the local health club on a daily basis. He was the manager of said health club and it was called the “Sun Gym”. Police would call this place the “Gang Headquarters”. Along with Daniel, the Sun Gym consisted of mainly drifters, immigrants, and men previously released from prison. It was then when they discovered Adrian Doorbal, a 24-year old who dropped out of high school in the tenth grade. Adrian was Daniel’s minion and was the man who Daniel would go to if the latter needed money, or needed something to be taken care of. Both Daniel & Adrian attended the local strip club frequently and it was then when Daniel met Sabina Petrescu, a stripper working at the club who was a finalist in the competition for Miss Romania 1990, and later immigrated to the United States in 1992. Sabina instantly fell for Daniel, and believed everything he said. Daniel even lied to her and told her that he was a CIA operative working for the United States Government, and she believed him. Daniel would pamper her with cars, money, and other expensive items. The only problem was that he was merely a gym owner. So, how could he have received all of this money? The answer is a four-letter word every police officer dreads hearing.

Marc Schiller
By May 1995, Daniel Lugo was being investigated for the murders of Krisztina Furton and Frank Griga. However, this was not the only case that he and his "gang", were being investigated for. Approximately five months prior to these murders, Daniel was under police radar for the kidnapping of another wealthy businessman... 37-year old Marc Schiller. Marc was a Miami millionaire who was an Argentinian immigrant. He made a living off of a Medicare business that won him over $1,000,000 by 1993. When news broke out about Daniel Lugo & Adrian Doorbal being under investigation, Marc immediately went to police, and told them about what happened to him on the night of November 15, 1994. Keep in mind that this was May 1995 when he alerted police, and Marc was hesitant to actually tell them in the first place, because Marc himself, was in trouble with the law. He had been under investigation for Medicare fraud and believed if he were to notify authorities about Daniel & Adrian, the police would soon arrest him; so he kept quiet.

Marc was a friend and business partner of Jorge Delgado, a man who would later be part of the Sun Gym Gang, founded by Daniel Lugo. Jorge & Marc had began a mortgage business together in 1994, but after a bad business relationship, Jorge alerted Daniel about his business parter, Marc. Because Marc was being involved in illegal activity, Daniel & Jorge knew that there was no way Marc would notify authorities, and they were right. Jorge ended up being a co-planner in a brutal kidnapping that would put all wealthy men and women on their toes.

On November 15, 1994, the Sun Gym Gang (minus Daniel) waited outside a restaurant owned by Marc Schiller, armed with their strongest men, Mario "Big Mario" Sanchez, Adrian Doorbal, and several others, and they awaited for the 37-year old businessman to walk outside the eatery. This was their seventh time trying to kidnap Marc, as the previous six failed miserably with mistakes such as getaway cars not starting up, and walkie-talkies being too loud. Finally, when Marc arrived outside the restaurant, he was walking to get to his car, when one of the men grabbed him and tased him. The members of the gang all shoved him into the van that they were using, and handcuffed him - several of them punched him whilst he was being cuffed -, Marc believed he was a dead man.

When they arrived at the wearhouse that the gang rented, one of the members, believed to be "Big Mario", told another member to alert Daniel and stated, "the eagle has landed". When Daniel arrived, Marc was already being beaten up by members of the gang. Adrian was, beyond a reasonable doubt, the most sadistic. Adrian would not only light matches and cigarette butts onto Shiller's skin, causing third-degree burns, but he would hysterically laugh whilst doing it. "I've ended up calling it Hotel Hell," said Marc to 48 Hours Mystery reporter, Troy Roberts.. "They tasered me, they punched me, they pistol-whipped and burned me with a lighter. They played Russian roulette against my temple and performed mock executions. I was chained to a wall and blindfolded throughout the ordeal. They hardly gave me anything to eat." Marc was never allowed to use the restroom, and he would urinate and defecate in his underwear. If Marc was lucky, the gang would feed him "Chef Boyardee's Ravioli", but it is believed that it was expired. Daniel warned Marc about the money he owned and threatened him. He told Marc that if he weren't to hand him his money and valuables, they would find his wife, and gang rape her in front of him. Marc was allowed to make one phone call, to which he called a family member. He told them to go to Colombia and "stay safe". Surprisingly, Marc's wife did not call the police, nor did any of his co-workers and other family members. After almost a month, Marc gave into Daniel's orders, and signed away all of his belongings. He gave his life insurance to the gang, along with his house, his cars, and his hope. Daniel, Adrian, and other members of the gang were moving into Marc's home and partying constantly, whilst Marc was in grave danger.

The gang unanimously decided to kill Marc, because they were aware that people would be suspicious about what would happen if strangers were to be residing in the home of someone else. The execution date was set for December 15, 1994. Starting on December 12, Daniel and his gang forcefed Marc alcohol and drugs to get him unconscious, and Daniel's plan was something that could come out of somebody's worse nightmare. Adrian drove Marc's Toyota into a pole near where the warehouse (aka Hotel Hell) was located, and placed an unconscious Marc Schiller in the driver's seat, to make it look like he had crashed the car. With Marc passed out from a heavy amount of liquor, tequila, vodka, PCP (a drug that could make you hallucinate), and sleeping pills, Adrian doused the car with gasoline, and set it on fire. The father of two and once-wealthy business owner, was burning alive. Adrian made a terrible mistake when it came to killing Marc, because he did not buckle him up. The flames surprisingly revived Marc and caused him to fall out of the car, all whilst Adrian and others were watching within several feet from the burning automobile. Marc soon was conscious again, and realized what had just happened and what he had been a part of. Carl Weekes, a member of the Sun-Gym gang and now a born-again Christian, was told by Adrian to "run the matzo ball over" (a slur referring to Marc being Jewish). Carl ran Marc over twice, and everyone believed (minus Jorge) it was enough that Marc would've died due to blunt force trauma. An initially terrified Marc, was in a coma when he was rushed to Jackson Memorial Hospital, the #1 hospital in Miami. When in the hospital, and when he finally woke up, he told nurses and anyone willing to listen, about his encounter with the Sun Gym Gang, but not a single person listened. Marc was not in the clear, because Daniel soon became convinced that he was still alive. Along with Jorge, Daniel hatched a "Plan B" to go into the hospital, and kill Marc Schiller. Marc's sister booked a flight to New York, and left with Marc and Private Investigator, Ed Du Bois III to seek help.

Marc surprisingly made a full recovery, despite fractured bones, countless bruises, and memories that will leave him emotionally scarred. He is currently alive and well, at the age of 60.

Muscles and Mayhem
Within five months, the Sun Gym Gang had spent ALL of Marc Schiller's money on cars, strippers, and alcohol. Like a child, when they (Sun Gym Gang) are finished with something they love so dearly, they want more. They had their minds set on a man named Winston Lee, however, due to his unpredictability, Daniel gave up on Winston, and eventually settled for a familiar face on this episode, Frank Griga.

Adrian Doorbal was the first member of the gang to stumble upon Frank Griga's Lamborghini Diablo SE30, and he was attracted to it. Hungarian stripper and girlfriend of Adrian's, Beatriz Weiland informed Adrian that the car belonged to Frank Griga, and Adrian's reaction, was like a kid at a candy store. When Beatriz alerted Adrian about Frank not only being her ex-boyfriend, but being a frequent member of the "Solid Gold Strip Club", Adrian realized he was being given fresh meat on a silver platter. Adrian and his "boss", Daniel Lugo fabricated a business deal with Frank and it was planned to be set at the "Solid Gold Strip Club" in Miami. Initially, the plan was to kill Frank, but Daniel realized that he and Adrian were going to need to kidnap Krisztina, as she would notify authorities quicker than Marc's wife would. Frank had no criminal record, and was not involved in any illegal activity, making it more difficult to get away with.

When Frank & Krisztina arrived at Daniel's apartment on the night of May 22, 1995, they were immediately attacked. Adrian began strangling Frank, and because Adrian was a frequent steroid user, he was unaware of the amount of strength his arms had as opposed to the slightly overweight Frank. Krisztina screamed in fear when she heard Frank's cries for help, and Daniel tackled her to the ground. Daniel injected Krisztina with horse tranquilizer, and believed that she was already dead. Frank had been killed already due to having a cracked skull "courtesy" of Adrian, and Krisztina was on the verge of dying thanks to the amount of tranquilizer that she was injected with. Daniel demanded Krisztina to give him and Adrian the address to Frank's residence and the access to his bank account, but Krisztina not only denied it, but was physically unable to given the amount of Rompun in her system causing her to lose consciousness but also stop breathing. Adrian went to check on Krisztina a few minutes later but told Daniel, "the bitch is cold". With no money earned, and two casualties, Daniel & Adrian realized that they were now responsible for the murders of two innocent people.

Now having to dispose of the bodies, Daniel & Adrian brought their friend Jorge Delgado, and began stuffing Frank's body inside of a couch, and Krisztina into a box. The three of them took the bodies to the same place where they had previously kidnapped and tortured Marc Schiller, and began using axes, chainsaws, and knives that they had bought from the Home Depot later on. When the chainsaw got stuck in Krisztina's hair, Daniel reached for the axe and began cutting each of the body parts of both Frank & Krisztina. Daniel, Adrian, and Jorge stuffed the body parts in oil drums, barrels, and buckets, and put them in the Everglades near the Alligator Swamp where they were discovered later on. One of the other members of the gang, believed to be 56-year old John Mese, the accountant for the Sun Gym gang, drove the Lamborghini into the woods, where it was also discovered. The evidence lead back to the Sun Gym Gang, and the first person to be arrested, was Adrian Doorbal.

Eventually all members of the Sun Gym Gang were arrested and charged with crimes ranging from kidnapping to first-degree murder. Daniel Lugo fled to the Bahamas, but Sabina Petrescu told authorities where Daniel was hiding, and soon, Daniel was arrested. All members of the Sun Gym Gang were soon to face trial.

Order in the Court
1998 was a memorable year when it came to criminal justice. Matthew Shepard, a 21-year old college student at the University of Wyoming was brutally murdered in an act of homophobic violence. James Byrd Jr. was dragged to his death by three white supremacists in the late Spring of that year. We also saw the beginning of then-President Bill Clinton's erupting sex scandals on January 17. Also in the news, was the upcoming trials of the Sun Gym Gang. Prosecutor Gail Levine would be the lead investigator into getting all the men in this crime, behind bars for good.

The trial was videotaped, and one of the key witnesses to the trial, was Sabina Petrescu. Despite this, the stripper believed that Daniel Lugo was a confirmed CIA Agent and was innocent. Although this did not help Gail with her case, it also did not hurt. Sabina was not the sharpest tool in the shed, and repeatedly fumbled when it came to answering questions. Once, she was in tears when Gail was asking her questions about Adrian Doorbal. Another witness was John Mese, the now 59-year old who was the accountant for the Sun Gym Gang who was also in trouble with the law previously. John was actually given a plea deal. If he plead guilty, he'd receive only 6.5 years in prison for his roles in the Sun Gym Gang's criminal activity. Because he did not want to be seen as a "traitor to my people", John plead not guilty. This decision could cost him the rest of his life. Marc Schiller was yet another witness. He testified against both Adrian & Daniel. During Marc's testimony, Adrian was seen chuckling to his attorney and smirking, just like he did throughout the entire trial. Daniel was more stern and had an intense look on his face, wanting to get down to business. Due to the amount of evidence, and the 97 witnesses who testified against the Sun Gym Gang (along with the 1 defense testimony by Sabina), the jury wasted no time in deciding the verdict. Daniel Lugo & Adrian Doorbal were found GUILTY of first-degree murder.

The defense now had to plead with the jury. Attornies hoped that Daniel & Adrian would receive life imprisonment, and surprisingly chose to not put on any defense. However, in this case, the jury did not get to choose the penalty they received, but instead the judge did. Both Adrian & Daniel were sentenced to death by lethal injection on July 17, 1998.

Marc Schiller was soon arrested for his role in his Medicare fraud following the trial's ending, and the person who ratted him out was Jorge Delgado. Marc was sentenced to 4 years in prison, and was released in 2001, after serving three. Investigator Ed Du Bois III believes that Marc is innocent, and instead Jorge framed him due to wanting revenge.

The Aftermath

 * Jorge Delgado was sentenced to 20 years in prison for taking part in the mutilations of Krisztina Furton & Frank Griga. However, he was released in 2005 after only serving 6.5 years in jail. Jorge states that he has regretted ever wanting to hurt Marc Schiller, but it is unlikely Marc will ever forgive him.
 * John Mese was found guilty of his roles in the Sun Gym Gang activities, and was sentenced to 56 years in prison. John was also sentenced to 30 years in prison for conspiracy to commit racketeering, adding his sentence to 86 years in prison, effectively a life sentence. John died in January 2004 at the age of 64 from a stroke.
 * "Big Mario" Sanchez is rumored to have left the Sun Gym Gang once they plotted to kill Marc Schiller, and it is unknown if he was sentenced to any jail time.
 * Carl Weekes has become a born-again Christian. He was played by Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson in the 2013 Hollywood Movie, Pain & Gain (hence why this episode is titled "Pain & Gain")

Adrian Doorbal & Daniel Lugo reside on Florida's Death Row today. Adrian has run out of appeals and Daniel is on his very last one.

Hurricane Pineapple - My Thoughts
I just want to give credit where it's due; the majority of my research was based off of an episode of 48 Hours Mystery called "Muscle & Mayhem". 48 Hours is an amazing crime reality/documentary show and I HIGHLY suggest watching it in your spare time. There is nothing in my opinion, like sitting back with some Watermelon Jolly Ranchers, and watching the work of some amazing reporters pay off.

When I first saw this case in January 2016, I was glued to the case. This case had sex, drugs, money, girls, and it's arguably a crime fiction writer's dream come true. That being said, I recommend you watch Pain & Gain for yourself. I hated the movie as much as I hated Alpha Dog, mainly due to the fact that Mark Wahlberg is in it, but also due to the fact that it depicted Marc Schiller in a way that he wasn't. They portrayed Marc to be a selfish, greedy douche, even though there is no proof that Marc was a selfish douche (he was greedy though, *coughs*MEDICARE FRAUD*coughs)

I am happy that Daniel Lugo & Adrian Doorbal are on death row, because of what they did to Frank & Krisztina. Krisztina wanted to become a diver and was a lover of animals, whilst Frank was a self-made millionaire and was a loving son, brother, and friend to the people who loved him. It sickens me that people are willing to rob other's of their innocence for something that is temporary (money).

That's going to do it for this episode of Hurricane Pineapple. I will let you guys know that next week I will be releasing a special version of Hurricane Pineapple called the "Seven Deadly Sins". These will consist of 7 criminal cases that I have compiled up, and each case will focus on one of the deadly sins. Here is a sneak peak, and try to guess which one's they are.

Sneak Peak for Episode 10
"He was a lonely man, he wanted to find women, and use them in any way, shape, or form". "The pictures say it all, he is a monster." "John & Susan gave him everything, but yet he wanted more." "Today, I will have my revenge, against all of you." "When you are willing to sacrifice your child in exchange for money, you're a special kind of evil." "Whether it was sexual curiosity, manipulation, or hunger, this man is a psychopath." "Anyone who lets this arrogant bastard within one foot of their child, should lose custody of their children".
 * Each of these cold-blooded criminals murdered for their own form of pleasure.
 * LUST
 * WRATH
 * SLOTH
 * ENVY
 * GREED
 * GLUTTONY
 * PRIDE

Viewed this poll? Click here! Okay!

Should Marc Schiller have gone to jail? Yes. He was involved in Medicare fraud, which is illegal activity. No. He was tortured by these sick monsters, that's MORE than enough punishment. You're just kicking a dead horse at that point.