Molinaro worked for Associated Interior Drywall in Sarasota and was working in an eighth floor unit when he apparently stopped to take a break on the balcony. He leaned against two cables stretched across the balcony as a safety measure to keep workers from falling, and the cables pulled out of the wall.
Venice police Sergeant Mike Treanor said police closed the jobsite and OSHA was contacted. Investigators began examining the cables stretched across the other balconies almost immediately to determine if they were safe, and met with witnesses and workers on the site.
Police detective Bob Perry told the Venice Gondolier Sun that Molinaro appeared to hit the ground feet first, and that lacerations on his hands indicated he tried to grab one of the cables as he fell. Molinaro survived the fall, but was pronounced dead at a local hospital.