A San Diego courtroom has become the stage for a gripping drama involving eerie “hex” emails, a lethal plant poison, and the mysterious disappearance of a wife, as Larry Millete faces trial for allegedly murdering his missing wife, May “Maya” Millete.
The trial commenced in earnest after the completion of opening statements on Monday at Chula Vista Superior Court. On Tuesday, prosecutors began presenting their first witnesses, marking the start of the trial’s initial full day of testimony.
Prosecutors wasted no time in laying out their case, asserting straightforwardly that Millete murdered his wife due to his refusal to accept the dissolution of their two-decade-long marriage.
“For Larry Millete, divorce was simply not an option,” declared San Diego County Deputy District Attorney Christy Bowles to the jury, describing a man who would go to any length to prevent his wife’s departure.
Maya’s disappearance occurred in January 2021, mere days before the family was set to embark on a trip to Big Bear Lake to celebrate their daughter’s 11th birthday.
Since then, she has not been seen.
Her car remained parked outside the family’s five-bedroom home.
Her phone went silent.
Calls went straight to voicemail.
Within days, her sister, Maricris Drouaillet, reported her missing.
Now prosecutors say the case is not about a disappearance, but a murder.
One of the most explosive allegations involves a vial found inside the Millete home.
Investigators say it contained a liquid that testing later identified as hemlock, a highly toxic plant.
Hemlock is not subtle.
It attacks the nervous system and can trigger nausea, vomiting, rapid heartbeat, paralysis, and respiratory failure as the lungs shut down.
Prosecutors also told jurors that Millete allegedly searched for information about hemlock online and looked up poisons that could kill quickly, suggesting a growing fixation on lethal methods.
But it is the alleged “spell” communications that have added an unusual and disturbing layer to the case.
According to investigators and statements discussed in court, Millete allegedly exchanged hundreds of emails with online “spellcasters” before his wife disappeared, seeking ways to influence or harm her through supernatural means.
In one message, he allegedly asked, “Can you hex to have her hurt enough that she will have to depend on me or need my help?”
He allegedly followed with more disturbing language, writing, “She’s only nice to me when she needs me or [is] sick. Thanks again. Maybe [an] accident or broken bone.”
Prosecutors say the messages show a man escalating from emotional manipulation into darker fantasies of control and harm as his marriage collapsed.
As testimony began Tuesday, jurors also heard emotional testimony from Maya’s father, Pablito Tabalanza.
While being questioned by prosecutors, Tabalanza broke down crying on the witness stand and shouted directly at Millete: “I loved my daughter very much. Why did you do this? Why did you do this?”
Maya’s sister previously told investigators that Maya had met with two divorce attorneys shortly before her disappearance and warned the split would be “messy.”
She also said Maya confided a haunting fear, telling her, “if anything happened to her, it’s going to be Larry.”
Larry Millete was arrested on Oct. 19, 2021, and charged with first-degree murder.
He has pleaded not guilty and maintains that Maya left on her own.
Defense attorney Colby Ryan rejected the prosecution’s theory, arguing investigators locked onto Millete too early and ignored other potential suspects, including a co-worker Maya allegedly had an affair with and the man’s pregnant wife, a county sheriff’s deputy.
Ryan also challenged the poison evidence, telling jurors that most tests showed no sign of hemlock and suggesting the lone positive result could be a false reading caused by a similar plant.
He called the prosecution’s case “tragic, emotional (and) provocative,” but said it only works if jurors believe Millete pulled off what he described as “the perfect murder.”
The trial is expected to last about three months and is already drawing intense attention, even as Superior Court Judge Enrique Camarena barred cameras and live streaming from the courtroom, forcing observers to follow the case through a closed video feed.
