Waldo Mesa Nunez — Direct/Cross
217 linesMS. NORRIS: We call Waldo Nunez.
JUDGE HANKINSON: Have a seat, slide up the microphone, please.
MS. NORRIS: Good afternoon.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Good afternoon.
MS. NORRIS: Can you introduce yourself to the jurors and spell your first name and your last name?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes. First name is Waldo Mesa Nunez.
MS. NORRIS: Spell it.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes, sir. W-A-L-D-O, M-E-S-A, N-U-N-E-Z.
MS. NORRIS: And how are you currently employed?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: I'm employed for Miami-Dade County.
MS. NORRIS: Did you previously work at Comfort Rent-a-Car?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes, ma'am, I did.
MS. NORRIS: What was your position there?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: I was a sales representative.
MS. NORRIS: And is that located in Miami, Florida?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: How long did you work there?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: I worked there from 2014 — since 2014 to 2017.
MS. NORRIS: Were you working there in June of 2014?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: And do you recall what shift you worked, like which hours you worked?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: I used to work from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m.
MS. NORRIS: So the evening shift?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: And whenever a person came into the rental car — the Comfort rental car — and wanted to rent a vehicle, would they have to fill out like a rental agreement or a contract with the company?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: Would that contract include things like what kind of car they're renting?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: The length of the car rental?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: The person renting the car?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Of course.
MS. NORRIS: May I approach, Your Honor?
JUDGE HANKINSON: You may.
MS. NORRIS: I'm going to start by showing you what I've marked for identification as State's 89A.
MS. NORRIS: Do you recognize this document?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes, I do.
MS. NORRIS: And how do you recognize it?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Because of the handwriting.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: It's my handwriting.
MS. NORRIS: Do you recognize the handwriting?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: And what is the document?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: It's a contract from the rental car.
MS. NORRIS: And were these the rental agreements and how they looked back in June of 2014?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: And is this an accurate copy of the rental agreement that you filled out in this particular case to Sigfredo Garcia?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes, it is.
MS. NORRIS: And I'm also showing you what I have marked as 89B.
MS. NORRIS: Is this the corresponding receipt that goes along with the rental agreement in 89A?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes, it is.
MS. NORRIS: And is your name also on State's Exhibit 89B?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes, it is.
JUDGE HANKINSON: Any objection? 89 — A and B will be admitted.
MS. NORRIS: Do you recognize this rental agreement as well?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes, I do.
MS. NORRIS: And how do you recognize it?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Same handwriting, writing, on the same format of the contract.
MS. NORRIS: And these are the type of documents, just like State's Exhibit 89, that Comfort would have?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: And they would keep those records in the normal course of business, to have records of the cars they're renting out to people?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: Okay. And is this an accurate copy of that Comfort rental agreement?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: At this time I'd offer in evidence State's Exhibit 90.
JUDGE HANKINSON: Any objection to that?
JUDGE HANKINSON: It'll be admitted.
MS. NORRIS: Could you second publish?
JUDGE HANKINSON: Yeah. You may.
MS. NORRIS: I'm going to start by showing you State's Exhibit 89.
MS. NORRIS: This name up here, Garcia — I guess the last name is Garcia, Sigfredo — is that the name of the person who's renting the vehicle?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: What about the information to the right here, the silver Nissan Altima — is that the description of the vehicle that's being rented?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: What is this number here, the CKV I85, that says?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: That would be the tag number.
MS. NORRIS: For the vehicle rented?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: For the vehicle.
MS. NORRIS: And the date here, June 2, 2014 — what date is that in here?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: That would be for the date that the person rented the vehicle.
MS. NORRIS: Now This $500 amount, what is that?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: That used to be a deposit that they would take whenever someone rented with cash.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes, it was.
MS. NORRIS: Due on June 5th. Why — Does this contract say that the vehicle's due at 8:50 p.m. on June 5th of 2014?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: If it says it's at 8:50, it's because the person rented the vehicle at 8:50. It was based on a 24-hour period.
MS. NORRIS: And you mentioned earlier, this is your handwriting — you were the one filling out the rental agreement?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: What time would you indicate the vehicle had to be back? When you started writing the contract, at the end of the contract?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Whenever I put the time in the contract — like if I started writing the contract, or I finish at 8:50, then the vehicle is due at 8:50.
MS. NORRIS: So however many days they want to rent it, you would do it in those 24-hour increments, starting from the time you began drafting the rental agreement.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: Is that right? Next.
MS. NORRIS: I want to show you— So is — Is this your handwriting?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: And what type — what type of vehicle was being rented in this agreement?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: It would be a Hyundai Sonata.
MS. NORRIS: What date was that vehicle rented?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: On the 3rd of June 2014.
MS. NORRIS: And who was the person renting this vehicle?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Sigfredo Garcia.
MS. NORRIS: Can you explain why it is we have two different cars being rented back to back?
MS. NORRIS: One on June 2nd, 2014 and one on June 3rd, 2014 — based on your review of these two rental agreements?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: It could be because he was just changing the vehicle.
MS. NORRIS: I can make some more foundation, Your Honor.
MS. NORRIS: You've examined these two rental agreements?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: Right. And was the same amount due for both rental agreements?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: Was the deposit amount the same?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: Was the date and time that the rental car was due back to Comfort Rent-a-Car identical for both of these contracts?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: Does the information that you're able to gather from the contracts indicate that a car was originally rented and then was exchanged the following day for a different vehicle?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes. Yes, yes.
MS. NORRIS: Was it common in your experience for people to trade?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes. Yes.
MS. NORRIS: When you're renting to someone — for example, Sigfredo Garcia here — would you take a photocopy of their driver's license?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: And why would you do that?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Because we always kept information of whoever was renting the vehicle.
MS. NORRIS: You did that in this case?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: When you take that identification card, do you make a comparison to the person to whom you're renting to make sure?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes. Yes.
MS. NORRIS: At the time of these rental agreements, back in 2014, did Comfort Rent-a-Car have, like, GPS things on their cars?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: And what was the purpose of that?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: It was in order to track the vehicles, to see where the vehicles were.
MS. NORRIS: And whichever company y'all contracted with for GPS location information would provide that back to the rental company?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MS. NORRIS: One moment, Judge.
JUDGE HANKINSON: You may.
MS. NORRIS: Thank you, Mr. Mesa-Nunez. I don't have any more questions.
JUDGE HANKINSON: Garcia.
MR. ZANGENEH: Mr. Nunez, or—
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Mesa is fine, or Nunez, or whatever. Yes.
MR. ZANGENEH: I'm directing your attention to the government's Exhibit 89A.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: The government was just showing me this, right? In the college?
MR. ZANGENEH: Yeah.
MR. ZANGENEH: There's a provision in there that says days. There's the number three, correct?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MR. ZANGENEH: And then there's a rate, $49 a month, correct?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MR. ZANGENEH: And that's for a decent amount of money, right?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MR. ZANGENEH: The next contract does not have an amount of days, correct?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MR. ZANGENEH: And there's no daily rate, correct?
MR. ZANGENEH: Correct?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes. Yes, there's no daily rate.
MR. ZANGENEH: The license plate here is CSHD78. Is that correct?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MR. ZANGENEH: So again, CSHD78, correct?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MR. ZANGENEH: So I'm referring to the government's Exhibit 87.
MR. ZANGENEH: Is that correct?
MR. ZANGENEH: Mr. Mesa, you still see that, correct?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MR. ZANGENEH: This is your rental agreement that you've testified to about today, correct?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MR. ZANGENEH: Now, what's that license plate number?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Oh, you want me to read it?
MR. ZANGENEH: Yes, sir. Yes.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: C-S-H-D-7-E-A.
MR. ZANGENEH: And you'll agree with me that that is the same?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MR. ZANGENEH: Luis Manuel Rivera.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Correct.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Correct.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes, sir.
MR. ZANGENEH: And you testified?
MR. ZANGENEH: June—
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: 4th.
MR. ZANGENEH: What's the year, sir?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: 2014.
MR. ZANGENEH: 2014. Yes. Time?
MR. ZANGENEH: 9 p.m.? Or 9 a.m.?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: 9:12 a.m.
MR. ZANGENEH: Yes. It asked you, was it common for certain aspects in the car rental business — do you recall that? — that people were turning cars in or exchanging them under the same contract?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Yes.
MR. ZANGENEH: You'll agree with me that it's common for certain people to rent cars for other people?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Rent cars for other people?
MR. ZANGENEH: Right. So is it uncommon for a person to go and rent a car and somebody else use it?
MS. KAWASS: We object to lack of foundation.
JUDGE HANKINSON: I'm sorry, your legal objection?
MS. KAWASS: Lack of foundation. Speculation.
JUDGE HANKINSON: Overruled.
MR. ZANGENEH: Mr. Mesa?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Can you repeat the question again?
MR. ZANGENEH: Sure. No problem. Yeah. Is it uncommon for someone to go and rent a car and then somebody else to drive it?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: I wouldn't know. I rented a car to the person that's renting the car. What they do with the car after that, it's up to them. But I'm not—
JUDGE HANKINSON: He's answered the question.
MR. ZANGENEH: Have you ever had occasion for someone to rent a car and then for somebody else to drive it that you found out about?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: I wouldn't know if someone else drove it, because when you take the car out, the person who's on the contract is the only person who can drive the car.
MR. ZANGENEH: Well, let me give you an exact example.
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: Okay.
MR. ZANGENEH: June—
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: What?
MR. ZANGENEH: June 3rd, 2014. That's the contract that we're looking for.
MR. ZANGENEH: Now, we have a citation here written by a Florida Highway Patrol officer, with the make and model year consistent with the car that you rented.
MR. ZANGENEH: With the license plate exactly the same as the car you rented, with somebody else's name.
MR. ZANGENEH: Have — Have you ever heard — is this an uncommon occurrence?
WALDO MESA NUNEZ: I don't know.
MR. ZANGENEH: No further questions.
MR. ZANGENEH: Magbanua.
MR. DECOSTE: No questions, Your Honor.
JUDGE HANKINSON: Redirect.
MS. NORRIS: No, Your Honor.
JUDGE HANKINSON: Any juror have a question of this witness?
JUDGE HANKINSON: All right, you can step down. Do we need to keep him any further?
JUDGE HANKINSON: You can step down. You're excused. Thank you.
JUDGE HANKINSON: Let me see the lawyers, sidebar.
JUDGE HANKINSON: Let's take a quick break. Let's take it as quick as we can. We're going to do two witnesses.
JUDGE HANKINSON: And then before we break for the evening — they've said they'll be relatively short. We may not be done right at 5 o'clock. But go ahead and let's take a break as quick as we can.
JUDGE HANKINSON: Either side, anything?