Robert Geragi was on the cusp of making a hugely lucrative deal when an attacker shot him and left his body along railroad tracks west of Jupiter, the victim of an execution-style murder, according to authorities and his friends and associates.
In business with a former circuit court judge convicted of accepting bribes in Miami-Dade County, the longtime agricultural entrepreneur was positioning himself to sell a new organic fertilizer to industry giants Cheney Brothers and Florida Crystals.
But in this venture, as in Geragi’s past dealings, there was a catch that threatened to ruin the whole thing.
After the Fort Pierce-based fertilizer manufacturer threatened to back out of a handshake deal struck in June, Geragi’s attorney, Alan Espy, planned to file a lawsuit on Monday alleging breach of contract.
He stopped short that morning, though, when he got an e-mail from the manufacturer that seemed to offer hope of working things out.
That night, Geragi, a 61-year-old Jupiter man better known by his nickname, Pepper, disappeared. The next morning, he was found shot to death in a remote area off the Bee Line Highway.
“Things had begun to turn around for him,” said Espy, who described Geragi as one of his best friends. “I’m at a loss to understand any of this.”
Geragi, who formerly ran Fratelli Farms of Florida, was rebounding from a run of bad luck, and the fertilizer company represented his big comeback, friends and associates said.
Among Geragi’s recent business ventures was a failed investment in a deal to take over waterfront land leased by the Palm Beach Maritime Museum.
In lawsuits filed in 2007 and 2008, Geragi and a partner, Bernard Kirchner, claimed they were tricked by museum founder John Grant, developer William Sands and disbarred attorney Joseph Duva. Geragi and Kirchner said the trio lured them into a deal by intentionally concealing obstacles to a proposed development project on county-owned land.
The last lawsuit was settled earlier this year. Geragi formed Pure Green International Distributors in June 2009, records show. He also worked with Brillyant Resources LLC, a Fort Lauderdale fertilizer company, said Gregg Lickstein, Brillyant’s president.
Last month, Geragi met Fort Pierce agri-scientist Craig K. Jones, who also consults with Brillyant, and Dean O’Neill at Geragi’s $822,750 Jupiter home, Espy said. Jones and O’Neill run Terra Kinetics LLC and Terra Verde Farms of Florida LLC, and developed an organic liquid fertilizer. Espy said they made a deal with Geragi’s new company to distribute it.
Involved in the venture was Roy T. Gelber, a close friend of Geragi’s and a former Miami-Dade judge convicted in federal court in 1992 of taking bribes while on the bench.
Geragi stopped working with Brillyant and staked everything on Pure Green, drawing on Gelber for advice, Espy said.
He threw himself into courting high-profile customers. He met with Cheney Brothers CEO Byron Russell and approached Florida Crystals representatives, Espy said. Then an unexpected problem emerged with the prospective manufacturer.
“After the handshake agreement, something happened,” Espy said. “We couldn’t get them on the phone. We couldn’t get them to do anything. It seemed like they didn’t want to do business anymore.”
Jones couldn’t be reached Wednesday. O’Neill didn’t respond to repeated messages seeking comment.
Tensions mounted as the planting season drew nearer. By Monday, Geragi had decided to press forward with the lawsuit, hoping to get to the bottom of whatever was holding up the deal. He sounded in good spirits when Gelber called him that morning.
“He was laughing and joking,” said Gelber, who described Geragi as a loyal friend who stood by him through the years.
It was the last time the two would speak.
Geragi never came home Monday night. His wife, Amy, reported him missing early Tuesday.
Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office detectives found his truck in a public parking lot near the Square Grouper in Jupiter. They suspected Geragi might have visited the nightspot before he was killed.
A CSX Railways worker found Geragi’s body on the tracks near 17000 Bee Line Highway. His injuries and the contents of his pockets indicated he was “executed” at close range rather than robbed, according to a source familiar with the investigation.
Investigators haven’t made public more information in the case.
News of his murder left his family, friends and business partners baffled and afraid.
“He was one of the most decent people. He was funny. If he had any money in his pocket, he would pick up the tab,” Espy said. “He was a decent guy, he was a charitable guy, and he deserved a hell of a lot better than he got in the last years of his life.”
