Selfdefense . The lead detective kept tellin us everyones life is in danger. Reporter or was it Something Else . Its a lousy excuse to kill somebody. Reporter what secrets were stored on this tape . When he come out, i was ready. Reporter villain . I just couldnt believe what i heard. Reporter or victim . Hug your family, kiss your children. You dont know when youre going to lose them. Reporter im lester holt and this is dateline. Heres Keith Morrison with miami heat. 3 f2 estamos con el calor de miami the days heat retreated, parks filled up, soccer games were called to order. Orlando mesa loved the evening ritual. He and his 18month old son, noah. Orlando doted on the boy. He was a handson dad. Reporter and noahs mom, cindy, was there to record it all. My husband was an outdoor person. So, you know, he was always doin things with noah. Reporter and so, on a spring evening in the gathering dusk, orlando walked behind noah, who rolled along on his toy car. A Security Camera watched them toddle down the sidewalk. They disappeared around a corner. That was the worst day of my life. Ter what happened . Well, thats still being debated, in a way. A chain of events, certainly. Of which a fatherson evening stroll may have been the first. But certainly not the last. But, a moment first to fill you in. Cindy, or janepsy, the name she was born with in cuba, came to miami as a teenager. She was bright, and ambitious. She learned english pretty much from scratch, became a hair dresser, experimented with her own, quite frequently, as you will see. It was back in 2006. Cindy carballo had been invited to a super bowl party. Lots of people there, in the crowd, and the noise. She didnt notice orlando mesa, but he noticed her. According to him, it was love at first sight. [ laughter ] reporter did you feel that way, too . Not at first. Reporter and then, after that super bowl party, she got very interested in that funny, handsome guy named orlando, the mechanic with the wild curly hair. He definitely was a jokester. So he made me laugh. Reporter orly, as she called him, was as ambitious as she was. He didnt just fix cars, he bought a couple of lunch trucks, and then he branched out into real estate development. Having tried marriage once, cindy was reluctant to try again. But orlando, not a man inclined to entertain doubts. And one weekend he invited cindy to a barbeque party. He surprised me. He knew that i loved mariachis. And then all of a sudden, all these mariachis, they come in and singin, and he gets on his knees and he proposed. So it was exciting. Reporter thats a day you dont forget. Never. Reporter so in short order, they got married, and had a baby, and became a family. Whyd you pick noah as a name . They had a book on baby names. And i saw the name noah. And it said it meant new beginning. So i loved it. Reporter so it was. A new beginning. As amply recorded as any new parents could make it. But, if this was the beginning, then what was this . That early evening in april 2008, orlando and noah heading down the street with his toy car. They turned the corner. Out of camera range now. And then i heard shots, very loud shots. And i went outside. Thats when i saw my husband, full of blood cryin for help. Im sorry, its an image that is never going away. I didnt see my son at first. So i thought the worst. I went crazy because i thought my son was kidnapped. Reporter then from the front yard near where orland neighbor called out. And she said, no i have your son. My brave neighbor, she took my son from my husbands arms. When i ran to grab my son, my son was shot, full of blood. Reporter neighbors called 911 a babys been shot. Reporter in the distance, as the caller spoke to 911, a woman screamed. It was cindy. How old is the baby . [ screaming ] oh my god, oh my god, oh my god. Reporter cindy held her son for dear life. Orlando tried to speak. He was askin was, honey, tell me hows the baby. Is the baby okay . Reporter then an agonizing decision, ride in the ambulance with her baby, or stay by her dying husband. Of course i was torn in two. But my main concern was my baby. So i jumped immediately in the ambulance. Reporter as cindy sped away to the hospital with noah, the paramedics worked on orlando where he fell, but it was too late. They could not save him. Detective Felix Guadarrama of the north Miami Police Department went to the hospital, to check on the boy, and deliver the bad news. Thats the toughest part of my job. Reporter how did she take it . She obviously became even more upset, yeah, everybody started crying. It was just horrible to hear the news like that. Reporter but little noah would make it. Would be ok, thanks to his fathers selflessness. My son was shot in his arm and in his leg. But you know his father protected him. Reporter held him and covered him . When they were shooting at him, he just lifted my son up. Reporter keep em away from his body. Yes. Reporter what do you miss most about him . Bein with him all the time. Reporter that was when your life made sense. Thats what i knew. Us together with our baby. Reporter but now orlando was gone. And little noah was wounded and suffering. So she took him home to care for him there, in a house that felt empty. I couldnt sleep. Seein my baby suffer with the wounds. Losing my husband. He was very loved by everyone in my family. Reporter clearly, however, there was someone who didnt feel the same way about orlando mesa. And before long, said cindy, she and the north miami police came to the very same conclusion about who that might be. Cindy points to someone she thinks is a possible suspect and begs for help in bringing her husbands killer to justice. Hug your family. Kiss your children. 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Mcdonalds is getting together a refreshing mix of fun new flavors this summer. With the mochalicious new oreo frappe and the new real lemonades from mccafe. Reporter they were just going for a walk, on a pleasant miami evening and yet, when her husband was gunned down and killed, her 18 month old son wounded, Cindy Carballo didnt quite get it right away, that hers was a particular kind of nightmare. This was an execution. What does it do to your head when you think that . Somebody wanted him dead. I couldnt comprehend what was happenin. I was just in pain that i had lost my husband. Reporter three days after the shooting, cindy went before tv cameras at police headquarters. Hug your family, kiss your children, you dont know when youre going to lose them. Reporter holding her son, noah, his injured arm wrapped in bandages. She appealed for help to find the killers. The most Little Information that you know please come forward. Reporter police had urged her to make the appeal hoping that all that emotion would help generate some much needed leads. Though there was one lead, both amazing and ultimately frustrating. Right there just below the roof line of cindy and orlandos house was a Security Camera. We had video footage that we obtained from the victims home. Reporter thats the camera that captured father and son heading out of the house and down the street on that last walk they took together. Then, watch this a car barrels up to the curb. Two men burst out, guns drawn, run around the corner, out of camera range. Thats where they opened fire on orlando and noah. Within fifteen seconds, theyre back in the car, speeding away. But theyre not done. He was on the ground, they come back by and now, you have a second rally of shots. Reporter it was an execution . Yes. Reporter nobody could identify the two you can see on the video. Best witnesses could say was they were African American males with dreadlocks. One caller said she thought she saw a third man in the car besides the two shooters. I think there was about three people in the car. Reporter they found the car eventually. Abandoned. It had been stolen. And the evidence trail cooled dramatically. As for what the motive was, no one seemed to know. It was shockin. Because my husband was very much liked. He didnt have any known enemies. Reporter was that true . Detectives at the north Miami Police Department threw out a wide net. And, they got some help from cindy. When youre workin a homicide, you you wanna reach out to the people who were close to the victim. Reporter yeah. Spouses, best friends, business associates. You want to get as much information. Are there beefs . Are there bad businesses . Reporter thats when cindy thought about her husbands new business partner, a man named ilan nissim. The guy he got involved with in real estate development. When the police questioned me and they said who are his friends and partners, did he have any incident, thats when i said, well, you know, there was an incident with this business venture. Reporter cindy met ilan nissim and his girlfriend, neketa, at a Birthday Party for their daughter who was noahs age. And then, said cindy, orlando told her later, not long before he was murdered, that ilan lost a big packet of cash orlando entrusted him with. My husband gave ilan nissim money to purchase lots to get in the business. Reporter a lotta money . My knowledge was 180,000. And there was a robbery and the money was gone. Reporter 180,000 lost . In cash . Thats the sort of thing that makes a cop sit up and take notice. Tell me about the links between nissim and orlando. What were they doing together . Some small real estate, from what we understand. Reporter but all these sound like businesses on the up and up. Yes. Reporter cindy began to suspect that nissim must have had reason to want her husband dead. But as for what he may have done. I dont think she could say she just kept saying that he had to be involved. And there was an issue over money and it was just, like, her gut feeling this guy was involved. Reporter and then, the 20th of may. One month to the day after the murder, the investigation had stalled. Cindy was at home, alone, packing to move out of the house she shared with orlando. What happened . Well, sometimes it can take a while to figure out who did what to whom. Coming up, a knock, a shot and a mystery. He made a move and i panicked because i thought he was reaching for his gun. When dateline continues. Lyrica significantly relieves fibromyalgia pain and improves physical function. With less pain, i feel better. Lyrica may cause serious allergic reactions or suicidal thoughts or actions. 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Every day. On everything to make tonight a blockbuster. Walmart. Reporter burying a loved one is never easy. Burying a loved one who was murdered is incomprehensible. And to make it somehow worse, said cindy, police told her that her suspicions about that guy ilan nissan were well placed and they gave her a warning. She kept tellin us, this is a dangerous individual. Reporter and then, this was pretty terrifying, said cindy, after the murder, nissam called her on the phone incessantly. He always inquired about the investigation. So i felt he wanted to keep me close for information if he was maybe a suspect. Reporter and on the day of orlandos funeral who should show up, but nissim himself. Thats gotta be pretty bizarre, to have him at the funeral when you think he had your husband killed. It was. It was. I immediately told the lead detective in the case. Reporter the lead detective came to the funeral also. And she instructed us to act natural, not to let him suspect that we knew that he was the person. Reporter and to keep taking nissims calls. Cindy thought she could help police solve the case. But there was a little more involved than a pure murder investigation. The feds were in on it now, said abbe rifkin, the prosecutor assigned to the murder case. They were looking at mr. Nissim, as they were looking at her husband, as they were looking at other people who were allegedly in the drug business. Reporter the drug business . Yes. All that missing cash. And orlandos three prior convictions for marijuana and cocaine possession. Those things gave the crime the whiff of a classic drug hit. My husband unfortunately had a past. Before i met him, before i married him. Reporter mind you, orlandos crimes were not exactly big time. He pleaded guilty to all those charges and served a few days in jail. And though nissim also had a record, several assault convictions years earlier, when he was not yet 20, none of them had a thing to do with the drug trade. Still, question was, had something happened to sour their partnership . Just over three weeks after the murder, the police asked cindy to do more than just keep an eye on nissim. I was asked by the lead detective to maintain communication with him so i could work for them, wearing a wire, and help them catch this individual. Reporter a potentially dangerous thing to do, of course, wearing a wire, secretly recording conversations. Still, cindy said she would do it. And on the advice of the lead investigator, said cindy, she bought a gun for the first time in her life. She also decided to move out of her house. But as for the wire . She never wore the wire. Reporter no, she did not. And the reason . It was may 20th, exactly one month after the hit on orlando mesa. Cindy was home alone packing to move. And suddenly, an unexpected guest was at her door said cindy. Not just any guest, ilan nissim. Way in, she said. Peppered her with questions about her husbands business. He started askin me about my husbands warehouse. And if i had my husbands keys. And i said, i dont know where he keeps his keys. Thats when he became aggressive. And he said that i knew more than what i was tellin him. Reporter she watched in terror, she said, as he walked around the house. As he looked outside and saw that her dogs were securely leashed. Unable to help her. And then, she said, it got very scary indeed. And he grabbed me. Thats when he attacked me. I was able to get away from him. He reached out to grab me again. He scratched my neck. He ripped my shirt. He chased me through the house. Reporter cindy said she ran to the living room where she kept her newly purchased gun. And nissim, right behind her, tripped on some bags she was packing. And when i turn around, he made a move. And i panicked because i thought he was reachin for his gun. And thats when i i shot. And i ran outta the house. And i called 911. Somebody just tried to kill me, and i fired. I ran to the streets, hurry up come i need you to try to calm down so i can understand you. Somebody tried to kill me. Reporter had she stopped him . Were there others with him . She kept running. And shes frantically saying, oh, theyre chasing me, theyre chasing me. Reporter back at the house, police found nissim on the floor. He was very dead. They finally caught up with cindy a few blocks away, drove her to headquarters. How did they treat you that day . They treated me very well. They were very nice. After my statement, they told me that it was a justifiable selfdefense. Reporter afterwards, the lead detective dropped cindy at her parents house. And she told my family that i did the police a favor by taking out the trash. Reporter the next day, news reports quoted the police as saying nissim was a suspect in orlandos murder and that cindy was justified. Shot him in self defense. But now, regardless of that, you had just killed somebody. Youd taken another human life. Yes. Reporter that cant be ease rye to deal with. No, and and it felt unreal. It felt unreal. Reporter however, as you say, the police told youd taken out the trash. And did they essentially leave you alone after that . They dropped me off at my house and they my family members had nothing to worry about. Reporter you went on rebuilding your life. Correct. Reporter but as they say, dont count your chickens. Dont judge a book by its cover. Was this a story of selfdefense or revenge . I couldnt believe what i heard. Yep. When you design the whole phone, all the parts Work Together as one amazing part. If its not an iphone, its not an iphone. Its an olive garden first, but it wont last long create your own tour of italy, starting at 12. 99. Choose three of our nine mostloved dishes to enjoy on one plate, served with salad and breadsticks. Hurry in to create your tour at olive garden if you take multiple medications, a dry mouth can be a common side effect. Thats why theres biotene. It comes in oral rinse spray or gel so theres moisturizing relief for everyone. Biotene, for people who suffer from dry mouth. Know you can deposit checks right from your phone transfer money to someone quickly and easily speak to a financial professional when its convenient and pay for things with the tap of your finger know that with pncs Convenient Solutions at least your finances will be easy to control. Reporter Cindy Carballos husband had been murdered, her son wounded, and she had just killed the man she believed was responsible. It wasnt an easy load to put in the rear view mirror. But a few months after she killed ilan nissim it was noahs second birthday. And cindy decided his happiness would come first. So she organized a party. Pony