CHULA VISTA, Calif. (CNS) - A man charged with murdering his wife, a Chula Vista woman who remains missing 10 months after disappearing from her home, will remain in custody without bail, a judge ruled Thursday.
A defense attorney for Larry Millete, 40, who is accused of killing 39-year-old May "Maya" Millete, the mother of his three children, sought for bail to be set Thursday and told a judge her client would be willing to wear a GPS ankle monitor and surrender his passport if released from jail.
Bonita Martinez said Millete did not represent a danger to the community, nor was he a flight risk, given he had around nine months to flee following his wife's Jan. 7 disappearance.
Deputy District Attorney Christy Bowles alleged in court and in a written motion that Millete poses a threat to a man he believed his wife was having an affair with.
According to the prosecution's motion to deny bail, Millete asked a relative whether they could connect him with someone who could "get the other guy." Millete allegedly was willing to pay $20,000 for this, and the relative believed the defendant was "trying to find someone to possibly kill the man," court documents state.
After his wife sought a divorce, prosecutors allege Millete sought desperately to keep her in the relationship and went as far as employing the services of "spell casters," through which he hoped magic could be used to convince his wife to stay. Later, he allegedly sought for the spell casters to render her incapacitated so she could not leave the home.
Bowles said that starting Jan. 9, the defendant's "obsessive and frantic" messages to these spell casters shifted their focus to the man. Prosecutors say Millete sought to buy a "Death Spell" to target the man, as well as a spell to "punish" the man's unborn child.
"What's clear is when he feels like he is losing control, he becomes violent," the prosecutor argued.
Martinez said her client has "no record of any violence in his life" and said she'd been assured Millete's job with the Navy remains intact, meaning the court could limit his movements from his home to work, if it felt that was necessary.
The defense attorney also said San Diego Superior Court Judge Maryann D'Addezio should not exclude "other hypotheses" to explain May Millete's disappearance, though the judge said that for the purposes of setting bail, the court must assume the charges are true.
D'Addezio ordered that Millete remain held without bail given the nature of the allegations against him, and his prior violations of court orders regarding a gun violence restraining order served against him, and a criminal protective order prohibiting him from contacting his children.
The investigation into the alleged murder and May Millete's whereabouts remain ongoing. Police are seeking information from the public related to a missing .40-caliber handgun owned by Millete, as well as the movements of his Lexus GX460 on Jan. 8, when investigators believe he disposed of his wife's body.
Millete is due back in court Dec. 16 for a readiness conference.
