2 Suspected Dealers Charged in Murder of DEA Agents

The district attorney’s office filed murder charges Monday against two suspected heroin dealers accused in the fatal shooting of two federal drug agents in Pasadena, alleging special circumstances that could result in a death sentence for one of the suspects if he is convicted.

At the same time, U.S. Atty. Robert C. Bonner announced that he will seek dismissal of a federal indictment against the two men, William Wang, 18, of Hacienda Heights and Michael Su Chia, 21, of Alhambra, because there is no provision for capital punishment under federal law.

‘Not Possible’

“It is lamentable, indeed, it is astonishing that it is not possible to obtain the death penalty under federal law for the murder of federal agents. . . . Only Congress can remedy this glaring inadequacy in the federal law,” Bonner said at a news conference announcing the state charges.

Dist. Atty. Ira Reiner said the complaint against Wang alleges two special circumstances, multiple murder and murder committed during a robbery, which make the death penalty a possible sentence.

No special circumstances are being alleged against Chia, he said, because there is no evidence now that Chia knew that the plan to rob the two drug agents--who the suspects apparently believed were drug dealers--included the murder of the agents.

Wang, who was shot eight times by pursuing agents shortly after the murder of agents Paul Seema and George Montoya, has recovered and is incarcerated at Terminal Island Federal Prison.

Wang and Chia both have been charged with two counts of murder, one count of robbery and one count of attempted murder in connection with the wounding of DEA agent Jose Martinez.

Prosecutors allege that Wang and an accomplice who was killed in the subsequent shoot-out, Wen Huei Kow, 27, of Monterey Park, opened fire on the three agents during an undercover drug buy in an attempt to steal $80,000 in cash from the agents.

Killed in Shoot-Out

Kow and Michael Alex Chow, 18, were killed in a subsequent shoot-out with pursuing agents in San Marino.

According to police reports filed with the new complaint in Pasadena Municipal Court, Wang told detectives that the incident had been planned as “a rip-off from the beginning” and also admitted shooting at least one of the DEA agents.

“First I look (at his) his head, and then I pulled the trigger,” he said in a transcript of the interview from his hospital bed.

But Wang said the suspects did not start the shoot-out with DEA agents in San Marino.

“I don’t know why . . . people started shooting at us. We don’t have any gun out. . . . They didn’t say anything, they just shoot us,” he said.

However, agents and officers at the scene all reported in police interviews that one of the occupants in the suspects’ car shot at officers during the chase.

Other officers said they began shooting once the suspects’ car had stopped because one of the occupants of the car had a gun pointed at them.

Wang also complained that he had been kicked in the head by one of the agents after he was shot.

“After he kicked my head, one of the guys said, ‘He shot my partner,’ ” Wang said.