Murdered Cinema Worker Added Hours To Pay Cancer Bills

Police say robbery is the likely motive in the shooting death of a 20-year-old cinema night manager who had been working double shifts to pay for cancer treatment.

A custodian found Michael Joseph Fidecaro early Thursday morning in a stairwell of the Cineplex Odeon movie complex in the Factoria shopping district.

Fidecaro, who was to have begun chemotherapy at Swedish Hospital in Seattle on Monday, was killed by a gunshot wound. Police said an undetermined amount of the theater’s money was missing.

Fidecaro was last seen alive about 2 a.m. Thursday as he was preparing to lock up, police Major Tim Johnson said.

Fidecaro had been working at the movie complex about four years.

Because he had no health insurance, he had been working double shifts to pay for his cancer treatments, said his mother, Cheryl McHugh of Des Moines.

McHugh said her son was diagnosed with testicular cancer about four months ago, and already had one testicle removed. Because the treatment likely would have left him sterile, he had recently visited a local sperm bank in case he wanted to have children one day.

McHugh said she last saw her son Wednesday evening when he drove her home so he could use her car while his was being repaired.

She spoke to her son at 11:30 p.m. Wednesday. “I called him to say it was raining and to be careful,” she said.