The Long Beach Police Department (LBPD) made four arrests this week in connection with the January 2015 kidnapping and murder of 3-week-old Eliza Delacruz.
As originally reported in the Signal Tribune, San Diego authorities found the deceased infant in a dumpster at a commercial strip mall in the 600 block of Palm Drive in Imperial Beach on Jan. 4. LBPD detectives traveled to San Diego to confer with authorities, and the San Diego Coroner’s Office confirmed the deceased infant as Eliza Delacruz, who had been missing from her family’s home in the 100 block of W. 51st Street where three of her adult relatives had been shot and injured on Jan. 3 around 5:50pm.
The preliminary investigation led detectives to believe an adult male suspect fled with the infant immediately after the shooting occurred.
Long Beach Fire Department responded to the scene and transported her parents and uncle to local hospitals. Two victims were in critical but stable condition. The third victim was treated and released.
The arrested individuals are:
Giseleangelique Rene D’Milian, 47, a resident of Thousand Oaks, was arrested in Corona. She was booked for murder, kidnapping, attempted murder and conspiracy, and is currently being held in Long Beach City Jail. Her original bail amount was $1,000,000 and has now changed to no bail.
Anthony Ray McCall, 29, a resident of Oceanside, was arrested in Oceanside. He was booked for murder, kidnapping, attempted murder and conspiracy, and is currently being held in Long Beach City Jail. His original bail amount was $1,000,000 and has now changed to no bail.
Todd Damon Boudreaux, 43, a resident of Fontana, was arrested in Fontana. He was booked for accessory after the fact and is being held in Long Beach City Jail. His original bail amount was $20,000 and has now changed to no bail.
Charisse Nicole Shelton, 29, a resident of Corona, was arrested in Corona. She was booked for accessory after the fact and is being held in Long Beach City Jail. Her original bail amount was $20,000 and has increased to $1,000,000. Shelton is D’Milian’s daughter.
“I could not be more proud of the Long Beach Police for bringing these suspects to justice,” said Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia. “This was a horrific and tragic crime, and those involved must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. I am hopeful that these arrests bring some peace to the family of baby Eliza. May she rest in peace.”
For several weeks, Long Beach detectives canvassed the area where the shooting occurred in search of witnesses, investigated the victims’ backgrounds, retraced the victims’ steps on the day of the shooting and reviewed extensive surveillance video footage, according to police.
Recently, detectives were able to piece together a possible motive for the kidnapping.
In 2014, D’Milian fabricated a story to her boyfriend that she was pregnant with his twins. She told him that she gave birth to his children in December 2014 while out of the country.
Based on their investigation, detectives determined D’Milian never gave birth to any children in 2014 and in order to continue with this deception, she intended to produce two children who matched the ages of her fabricated twins.
D’Milian developed a plot with McCall to kidnap Eliza and pass her off as her own child.
Initially, the investigation moved very slowly because the severity of the victims’ injuries prevented them from providing details to detectives, police said. Once the victims were released from the hospital, they were able to provide more information.
Long Beach detectives learned that Eliza’s mother had taken a public bus home on the day of the shooting, and they retraced the bus’s route to locate any surveillance video from nearby businesses. While reviewing video, detectives discovered a black Range Rover had followed the victim and Eliza, and the female driver contacted the victim after she got off the bus.
Based on interviews, detectives determined the following:
On Jan. 3, D’Milian and McCall, in separate vehicles, followed the bus that the victim and Eliza were riding.
About 4:15pm, the victim carrying Eliza exited the bus at Del Amo and Long Beach Boulevards and began to walk home. D’Milian stopped the Range Rover and had a brief conversation with the mother. The victim thought nothing more about the contact and continued home.
Less than two hours later, at approximately 5:50pm, McCall forced his way into the Delacruz home, shot three adults, and kidnapped Eliza.
The suspect fled the area with the child. The next day, Eliza’s deceased body was found in a trash dumpster in Imperial Beach.
The San Diego County Coroner ruled baby Eliza’s death a homicide. At this time, specific details related to the cause or time of her death are not being released. The reason she was killed remains unknown.
Connection to El Segundo case
As the Long Beach investigation continued, detectives learned that the El Segundo Police Department was investigating an assault case. In mid February, Long Beach detectives contacted the El Segundo detectives. The El Segundo assault case indicated the following:
On Feb. 6, 2015, at approximately 1:48am, El Segundo police officers responded to a hotel in the 2000 block of East Mariposa Avenue regarding an unknown trouble call.
Once on scene, officers discovered a 23-year-old female had been severely beaten with a full-size bat, inside a hotel room. Officers also located the victim’s uninjured 4-month-old infant son inside the room.
The alleged attacker, suspect McCall, had fled the scene after employees knocked on the victim’s door. The employees had been alerted by hotel patrons of a female yelling for help inside the room.
Due to the severity of the attack, El Segundo detectives immediately began an attempted-murder investigation.
A joint investigation between both departments was initiated, and El Segundo detectives provided information regarding persons and suspects who had been identified in the El Segundo case.
Detectives determined D’Milian knew the El Segundo victim for several years and was aware that she recently had a child. The victim was specifically targeted because of her child’s age and because D’Milan knew where to find the woman. D’Milian put a plan into motion to have McCall kill the mother in El Segundo and kidnap her baby, so D’Milian could pretend to be its mother and convince her boyfriend that it was their son.
Video and sketches
As the Long Beach shooting victims’ conditions improved, they began working with a sketch artist.
On March 18, Long Beach Police released video of the Range Rover and two sketches, one of the female Range Rover driver and one of the male shooting suspect. As a result of the release, detectives received new tips and names that matched those in the El Segundo case.
Using information from the new tips, detectives were able to conduct several interviews with newly found witnesses who provided crucial evidence that ultimately led to the four arrests.
Public’s help still needed
The investigation remains ongoing, and the public’s help is still needed. Detectives believe D’Milian misrepresented that she had a charitable organization that wanted to help young mothers and their infants. Detectives believe D’Milian contacted friends and acquaintances in their efforts to find infants.
Detectives are hopeful additional witnesses, who can provide supporting evidence of D’Milian or her associates’ prior attempts to seek out infants, will come forward.
Those who may have received a phone call or text message related to this matter are urged to call LBPD Homicide Detail at (562) 570-7244. Those wishing to provide a tip related to the El Segundo investigation should call Detective Luke Muir at (310) 524-2263. Anyone wishing to remain anonymous may call 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), or text TIPLA plus their tip to 274637 (CRIMES), or visit LACrimeStoppers.org .
Source: LBPD
