Police Seek Security Videos from Neighbors of Slain Rockville Couple

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Authorities have asked residents in the area where a Rockville hotel developer and his wife were stabbed to death to check their security systems for any video that might show suspicious activity.

Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy met with reporters Wednesday outside the Ridge Drive home where Julianne Vilardo and her husband, Richard Vilardo, were found dead by a family member on May 10.

Montgomery Community Media reports the prosecutor urged the residents of the Glen Hills neighborhood near Ridge Drive, who have home security systems, to notify police so they can review the footage for any clues as to who killed the Vilardoes. Residents should call 301-279-8000.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has ruled the deaths of Richard Louis Vilardo, 65, and Julianne Humphries Vilardo, 67, homicides that were caused by sharp force injuries. The couple lived in the 13200 block of Ridge Drive in Rockville, according to Montgomery County Police.

The victims were likely stabbed to death sometime between Saturday night and when they were found about noon Sunday by family members, police say.

“It was most possibly done by a knife or a sharp object,” Police spokesperson Natasha Plotnikov told Montgomery Community MediaTuesday.

Investigators say the Vilardoes were in the Charles Town, W.VA, area on Saturday evening, where they had dinner with friends. The couple came home that evening, which is the last time they were known to be alive.

Family members of the developer and hotel executive and his wife – both found slain Sunday at their home – say they know of no one who would want to hurt the couple.

Officers responded to the home at 12:18 p.m. Sunday. Julianne Vilardo was found dead inside the home. The body of Richard Vilardo was found just outside the rear of the house. Police said each suffered “trauma to the upper portion” of their bodies.

On Monday afternoon, detectives said they believe suspects entered the Vilardo home through a window. The glass was not broken, and the latch may not have been engaged.

“We are heartbroken over this senseless tragedy,” the couple’s family said in a statement. “Dick and Jody Vilardo were a warm and loving couple,” and family members “know of no one who would wish them harm.”

Investigators say the couple had agreed to meet family Sunday morning. “When the couple was late, family went to the home and found both victims deceased; family called police.”

Richard Vilardo was a co-founder of Pinnacle Hotel Management, a Florida based company that developed and managed Marriott and Hilton hotels, reports The Washington Post.

“I am heartbroken,” said Steven J. Fairbanks, one of Pinnacle’s principals, told the newspaper in a statement.

Vilardo’s biography on the Pinnacle website says before forming RDA and Pinnacle in 1996 and 1997, he was a principal in a Chevy Chase-based investment banking firm. Projects developed by the firm included a 600-room full-service Marriott hotel and two limited service properties in suburban New York and the Bethesda Residence Inn. Vilardo and Franklin still retain an ownership interest in that property.

Anyone with information regarding the deaths of Richard and Julianne Vilardo is asked to contact the Montgomery County Police at 301.279.8000.

For those who want to remain anonymous and be eligible for up to a $10,000 reward, call Crime Solvers of Montgomery County toll-free at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).

»Photo of Julianne and Richard Vilardo from Montgomery Community Media

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