TEN months after a Filipina American mother was reported missing, her husband was taken into custody on suspicion of murder.
Larry Millete, 40, was arrested at his home in Chula Vista, California on Tuesday, October 19 in relation to the case of his wife, May “Maya” Millete who has been missing since the beginning of January this year.
He was charged with murder and possession of a semiautomatic rifle prohibited under California’s assault weapons ban, according to San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan.
“As the evidence unfolded in this case, it pointed in one direction — that [Maya] was murdered,” she said during an afternoon news conference.
Larry’s lawyer, Bonita Martinez, said that she was “very, very surprised” about the arrest since a body has not been recovered.
“This is a surprise to me since they have no proof Maya is dead, and I believe she is still alive,” Martinez told KFMB-TV.
However, Stephan pointed out that prosecutors can file a murder charge without having a body.
“The law is so crystal clear that we cannot let someone murder someone and gain a benefit by hiding the body in a way that we cannot discover it,” she said.
May was last seen by her family at her home on the evening of January 7 and was reported missing two days later.
That Saturday, the family was planning a trip to Big Bear Mountain Resort for her daughter’s 11th birthday, but May was never heard from, as previously reported by the Asian Journal.
Larry, who reported her as missing, has been considered as a “person of interest” in her disappearance.
According to Stephan, May had called a divorce lawyer on the same day she disappeared.
“When she called the attorney on Jan 7, we know that Larry was aware,” Stephan said. “He sent text messages to his boss that this was final, that it was coming.”
Stephan also revealed that Larry was opposed to the divorce, hiring “spellcasters” to keep her from leaving.
“These spellcasters were asked to make May want to stay in the relationship. He was asking for May to become incapacitated, to be in an accident, to have broken bones so she would have to stay at home,” she said.
Larry also allegedly sent an ominous text the last night May was seen alive, saying: “I think she wants me to snap, and I’m shaking inside ready to snap.”
Further, Stephan talked about a security video from Jan. 8 showing Larry backing his Lexus SUV into the garage at his home before 6 a.m. He drove roughly two-and-a-half hours away, disappearing for 11 hours and 21 minutes with his 4-year-old daughter.
Stephan urged anyone who may have seen Larry’s black 2015 Lexus GX460 with personalized plates on the side of a road on Jan. 8 to come forward with any information.
Since the start of the case, 67 search warrants had been served, 87 interviews conducted and 130 tips reviewed, with thousands of hours poured into the investigation.
“These efforts ultimately generated a variety of pieces of evidence that have become clear and overwhelming,” said Chula Vista police chief Roxana Kennedy.
She added, “Larry Millete, May’s husband, is responsible for May’s murder and disappearance.”
In response to the latest developments, May’s sister Maricris Drouaillet said it was “overwhelming.”
“I’m still trying to take it [in],” she said. “It’s been really hard. He’s our family.”
“It’s hard to go against family. He’s been with us for 20 years. My sister loved him. She gave him three kids,” she added.
Drouaillet once again asked the public to help bring May home.
“We’re still asking the public: Please, help us bring my sister home,” she said.
“We did a promise to her 11-year-old daughter that we will bring her mom home,” she added. (Ritchel Mendiola/AJPress)
