Companion of Businessman Who Was Slain in Baja Now Suspect

An American woman who was in Baja California with Orange County businessman Claude L. Falkenstien when he was shot to death at his vacation home fabricated her story about robbers being involved and is now a “strong” suspect in the killing, a high-ranking Mexican police official said Monday.

During a press conference in Santa Ana on U.S.-Mexican police relations, Gustavo Romero Mesa, director of state police for Baja California, described the woman through an interpreter only as Falkenstien’s “wife or lover.” Francisco Ramirez, a Mexican State Judicial Police detective assigned to the case, later identified the woman in a telephone interview as Trish Engels, office manager at Falkenstien’s marketing firm in Irvine.

Mexican police said Engels, 33, told them that Falkenstien was shot Nov. 6 after two men wielding guns burst into his home in La Mision, an enclave just south of Rosarito Beach that is home to many Americans. Engels was not injured. She was held for 2 or 3 days by police in Rosarito Beach, then returned to the United States.

Mesa, who was in Santa Ana on Monday for a meeting between Mexican and U.S. law enforcement officials, said Mexican authorities have determined that no robbery occurred. Engels was able to return to the United States, he said, because American consulate officials had “pressured” police to release her.

Allegation Denied

A spokeswoman at the U.S. Consulate in Tijuana called Mesa’s allegation of undue pressure “absurd” and “absolutely untrue.”

Ramirez said Engels had since been reached through an intermediary but had refused a request to return to Mexico for further questioning.

Engels, reached by telephone Monday afternoon at her Irvine office, said she had not been contacted by anyone from Mexico. She declined to answer further questions, saying she would do so only after “someone contacts me.”

Mesa told reporters that since Engels was freed, police have discovered that items she reported taken by robbers from Falkenstien’s home--a gun, a briefcase, some keys, Falkenstien’s wallet and $300--have turned up in the hands of an American, who told police Engels gave him the items to hide. All of the items, said Mesa, are now in the possession of police.

Mesa would not identify the man who allegedly had Falkenstien’s property.

“She lied a lot,” said Mesa. “There was no such thing as an armed robbery.” Composite drawings of the alleged robbers are worthless because “these persons do not exist,” he said.

According to early reports of his death that apparently were based on Engels’ statements to police, two gunmen had burst into Falkenstien’s home the night of Nov. 6 while Falkenstien and Engels were cooking, and when Falkenstien ran toward a bedroom, one of the intruders shot him once in the chest. Engels reportedly also ran and hid in the kitchen.

Falkenstien, 58, of Newport Beach was the founder and president of Mass Media Marketing in Irvine.