Posted on 08/10/2002 11:18:43 PM PDT by chance33_98
Suspect says wife was having affair with inmate
Claims inmate was CIA agent who had contact with Iraqi's
By KIMBERLY K. FU
Vacaville Reporter
A Vacaville man accused of brutally slaying his wife provided vivid details about the decline of his marriage, peppered with allegations of an affair and betrayal, during a jailhouse interview Wednesday.
Hours later, Simon Ranteesi, 42, was arraigned on one count of murder with two enhancements - using a weapon and being out on bail when the offense was committed. The Public Defender's Office was appointed to represent him and granted a one-week delay, so a specific attorney can be named.
Though Ranteesi spoke with several reporters at the Solano County Jail Wednesday morning, Public Defender Robert Warshawsky asked that no reporters be allowed to talk to his client in the jail.
Commissioner Barbara James said there's nothing she could do about it, but she'd put a note in the file.
But earlier in the day, Ranteesi was talkative about the details of his life with Milia, 41. He would not, however, talk about the slaying that occurred Tuesday night in front of his Topaz Circle home.
"I can't talk about it, I'm sorry," he said. "I need counseling before I can talk about this." He insisted that there is more to the situation than meets the eye and that his family is now destroyed.
With a sigh, Ranteesi agreed it wasn't always that way.
"We were born two months apart in the same hospital in Jerusalem," he recalled. Both later moved to Santa Rosa and were introduced by family members.
"There's 10 marriages between my family and her family. It's like we're one family," he said. "She worked in a deli ... I saw her, she was a beautiful lady."
The pair fell in love, discussed their dreams and got married, he said. In their 17 years together, the couple had four children. Today, the oldest is 17 and the youngest is 3.
In the early years of their marriage, Ranteesi said, he concentrated on welding, working most recently out of Martinez. His wife studied criminal justice, even though he didn't approve.
"I was a welder. I wanted her to be a help to me," he said. "I wanted her to study something like construction."
But she persevered and reportedly received a bachelor's degree from a Santa Rosa college. Ranteesi said his wife joined the local sheriff's department, transferring to the Yolo County Sheriff's Department in 1994. She was a correctional officer, serving as a jail training officer at Monroe Detention Center.
A statement released by Yolo officials Thursday related that her co-workers were in mourning for the "outstanding employee" who was "respected by her fellow workers."
"I never worked with her, but I know she was well-liked," said Detective Louis Pires. Supervisors, he said, described her as "well-respected, well-liked and very dependable."
From their home in Sonoma County, the couple moved first to Vallejo, and in 1998 to Topaz Circle in Vacaville. Then, the problems began.
About a year ago, Ranteesi said his wife began to change. He couldn't clearly state why, but said he noticed differences in her attitude toward him. He said he questioned her, but did not receive satisfactory answers.
Ranteesi said a neighbor, a family member and others approached him with their suspicions. He had some of his own.
He said he uncovered what he believes was an affair between his wife and a "dangerous man" who had been an inmate at the jail. The man, Ranteesi claims, was a double agent with the CIA and an operative in the confidence of an influential Iraqi leader. Ranteesi said officials with the FBI and the Vacaville Police Department could verify the information.
The FBI was unavailable for comment and Vacaville police said they have not confirmed any of his statements.
"He says a lot of things," said Vacaville Police Lt. Jan Makowski.
But Ranteesi said both his wife and the man he suspected of being her lover not only admitted their affair, they flaunted it and tormented him with it. They even threatened him, he said.
"I'm scared for my life," he emphasized. "I want protective custody."
Milia soon wanted a divorce, but he wanted to reconcile, he said.
It was not to be.
Despite reported interventions by family, friends and their church pastor, the marriage continued to deteriorate.
In June 2001, the couple separated and divorce proceedings began. Milia reportedly moved back with her family in Rohnert Park, while Ranteesi remained in Vacaville.
They apparently shared custody of the children. Ranteesi said he was consumed with the need to protect his family and fearful of the man his wife had allegedly "taken up with." He continued to plead with her, he said, but his concerns fell on deaf ears.
"She said 'I don't love you anymore. I want a divorce,"' Ranteesi remembered, choking back tears. "And I cried."
His pain, though powerful, did not escalate into violence, he emphasized. He denied all allegations of domestic violence - a misdemeanor charge logged last September that resulted in a citation and three felony charges in November for which he was arrested.
Court documents show that his wife declined to pursue prosecution in the first case. Police said she tried to recant her statements regarding the second, but the charges are still pending.
Ranteesi claims his wife made up her claims. Recently, talks came to a head. Ranteesi reportedly bought the Topaz Circle home from his wife two weeks ago and agreed to all terms of their divorce.
On Monday, the couple was in court again, this time, for the felony domestic violence dispute. On Tuesday, the pair had their final argument. Ranteesi steadfastly refused to discuss any details of what happened the night his wife was killed and he was arrested.
"I want to know what happened to my wife," he said. "I need answers, I need to know."
Police also want answers.
They say Milia arrived at her estranged husband's home shortly before 5:30 p.m. to gather her children. The couple argued, he reportedly chased her and repeatedly beat her about the head with a metal rod-like object, police said.
Milia died at the scene, Ranteesi was arrested and the children - who police said witnessed their mother's slaying - were placed with family members.
Ranteesi had not yet heard from his children, nor any family members or friends since he was taken into custody, he said. The silence, he said, has been deafening.
"I've been stressed a lot; I've been crying a lot. I just remember my kids, remember my wife and start crying," he said. "What my kids think, what they see is not what it seems."
Ranteesi said he suffers from anxiety, and has been taking the drug Paxil to help him cope.
"When I take it, I have dreams," he said. He chose not to elaborate, but did say he has been off the narcotic since his incarceration.
"They don't let me have it here," he said.
Ranteesi said he feared someone was trying to kill him and that he had found a threatening homemade weapon in his cell.
Jail officials later said they found nothing in the cell. He lamented that he missed his family, needed to see them and explain.
Milia, as well, was on his mind.
"I miss her a lot. She is the mother of my kids," he said. "I need help. Please help me."
- Darryl Richardson also contributed to this report.
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