FBI arrests 2 in case of man shot, dumped in Dana Point Harbor
A man and woman are facing federal charges tied to the death of a man investigators say was shot in the head during a boating trip, with his body then dumped in the ocean.
Hoang Xuan Le, 38, and Sheila Marie Ritze, 40, were taken into custody Thursday morning by FBI agents carrying out raids at homes in Fountain Valley and San Juan Capistrano.
According to a federal criminal complaint that was unsealed on Thursday, the unnamed victim on Oct. 14 was lured onto a boat in the Dana Point Harbor with promises of an overnight fishing trip.
Two days later, the man’s body was found in the waters several miles northwest of Oceanside.
San Diego County medical examiner officials deemed the man’s death a homicide, determining he drowned after being shot and suffered blunt-force trauma, said Thom Mrozek, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
At around 5 a.m. Thursday, agents descended upon Le’s Fountain Valley home on Third Street off of Talbert Avenue, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said.
There, agents arrested Le, an alleged drug trafficker also known as Wayne, Mrozek said. He has been charged with first-degree murder. Authorities found an AR-15-type rifle, a shotgun and a crossbow at his home during the arrest, they said.
Soon after, Ritze was arrested at her home in San Juan Capistrano. She is a registered owner of the boat used in the killing and is charged with being an accessory after the fact. Federal prosecutors allege she was seen on surveillance footage from Dana Point Harbor getting onto the boat with Le and the victim, then returning hours later with only Le.
“Le has confessed to a confidential human source that he took the victim out on the boat, confronted the victim about a debt owed, shot the victim, tied weights to the victim’s ankles, and sank the victim’s body in the ocean,” an FBI agent wrote in an affidavit in support of the criminal complaints.
Le told the victim’s girlfriend and others he had decided last minute not to go on the pretend fishing trip, authorities said, but nine days after the body was found, the source told the victim’s family he had heard differently from Le.
The confidential source told investigators that Le confessed to the killing, saying the victim owed him $30,000 to $40,000, Mrozek said. The source later agreed to work with law enforcement and on Nov. 10 bought cocaine from Le at his home. During that meeting, Le showed an interest in being a killer for hire, authorities said.
“During subsequent meetings that were also recorded, Le sold more narcotics to the (confidential source), and Le again expressed a willingness to be hired as a hit man,” Mrozek said.
Prosecutors allege Ritze surveyed surveillance cameras around Dana Point Harbor, after the murder, and bought a tracking device that was later found on the victim’s girlfriend’s car.
Federal officials did not release the victim’s name because of a Department of Justice policy not to identify victims in criminal complaints. However, in general, names can become public once victims, their families or others testify in court.
Le’s murder charge carries a potential life sentence without parole or the death penalty. The accessory-after-the fact charge against Ritze carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in federal prison.
This case is being investigated by the FBI and the U.S. Coast Guard.
Late Thursday afternoon, a magistrate judge denied both Le and Ritze bond during their initial appearances at the federal courthouse in Santa Ana, leaving them to remain in custody. Both were assigned court-appointed attorneys.
In denying Le release, Magistrate Judge Karen R. Scott referred to his alleged history of substance abuse and a personal background that is “unknown or unverified.”
Scott denied a suggestion by Ritze’s attorney that she be allowed to post a $150,000 property bond. Referencing the tracking device, the judge said she believed Ritze could be a danger to the community.
Neither defendant entered a plea on Thursday. Both were ordered to return to court on Jan. 2.