COSTA MESA : Boat Mechanic Stabbed to Death

A 36-year-old boat mechanic was found stabbed to death in his house, police said Tuesday.

A friend and employer entered an unlocked door at about 10 a.m. on Monday and found Charles Edward Overturf in his dining room on Sunset Drive, Police Sgt. Ron Smith said.

Detectives found no signs of forced entry and nothing appears to have been taken, Smith said, but investigators said they have not ruled out robbery as a possible motive.

Overturf died of multiple stab wounds, according to the county coroner’s office, but detectives have not found the murder weapon. The victim’s father and a friend said they last spoke to him Sunday.

Friends remembered Overturf as an excellent boat mechanic and racing fan.

“We are all still in shock. As far as we know he did not have an enemy in the world,” said Gary Weden, who worked with Overturf at Archer Marine Services, which is next door to Overturf’s home.

Overturf was crew chief of a twin-motor speedboat, Ragamuffin, which was kept at Archer Marine.

Friends at Archer Marine said Overturf was excited about a speedboat race set for the July 4th weekend at Sarasota, Fla.

Rique Ford, owner of Ragamuffin and apparently one of the last people to speak with Overturf on Sunday, said Overturf’s skill in rebuilding and fixing boat motors helped propel the craft into the winner’s circle nine times in the last two years.

“Without a doubt, he is one of the greatest outboard mechanics I’ve ever known,” Ford said. “Everything was going great and then this happened. I don’t even feel like racing anymore.”

The office manager at Archer Marine said she became suspicious Monday morning when she saw Overturf’s van parked in a driveway but did not see him. Craig Archer then entered the victim’s house, said the manager, who declined to give her name.

Overturf’s father, Charles, 69, said his son had been in the Navy and served aboard a nuclear submarine for about 11 years.

“I don’t know what the heck happened,” he said from his home in Porterville, Calif., where he was trying to put together funeral arrangements. “He’s all I got, you know.”