Woman Accused of Drowning Daughter, 6, in Pond on Ranch

A woman was arrested Saturday for allegedly drowning her 6-year-old daughter in a remote Solano County cattle pond as horrified witnesses watched helplessly, sheriff’s officials said.

Solano County Sheriff’s Sgt. John Sanders identified the woman as Susan Riley, 32, of Fairfield. Witnesses said she ran away after they spotted her drowning her daughter, Melinda, in a pond on private ranch land about five miles from Fairfield on Friday.

She was charged with murder and booked at the Solano County jail in Fairfield Saturday afternoon after sheriff’s investigators interviewed her for several hours.

Riders Hear Screams

The witnesses, 75-year-old Red Womack, his granddaughter, a teen-age hand and an unidentified woman, all on horseback, heard screaming and believed they were witnessing an accidental drowning.

They threw a rope to the woman before realizing, they said, that she was apparently trying to drown the girl, who was struggling in the water. Womack told neighbors he rode to a nearby ranch residence and called police.

Meanwhile, the woman swam into the pond and struggled with Riley. According to the witnesses’ accounts, Melinda was already unconscious or dead and was floating face down in the water.

After the struggle, Riley ran into a ravine and an employee of an adjoining ranch saw a woman disappearing into a stand of eucalyptus trees. Sheriff’s deputies searched with Jeeps, on horseback and by helicopter until near dusk.

Arrested Next Day

Riley was arrested Saturday morning after a caretaker at a duck hunting club in the area called police to report a woman walking around the club area. Sheriff’s deputies report that she was standing at the front door and offered no resistance.

Riley, employed in Fairfield by Lucky Stores, also has a preschool son named Daniel. Her husband, David, is an employee of the Concord Naval Weapons Station.

A neighbor, who asked not to be identified, said he knows the Riley family and was “shocked” by the news of the killing. Melinda Riley “was a blonde-haired, blue-eyed little girl. I don’t know what to say, this hits pretty close to home,” he said.