Detailing Death of Triathlete

A Newport Beach man charged with murdering his wife off the coast of Newport Beach two years ago hit her with a dumbbell and weighed her body down before throwing her in the ocean, according to a police report unsealed Friday.

The report is the most detailed view yet in the case of Eric Christopher Bechler, 32, who on Friday pleaded not guilty to killing his triathlete wife, Pegye, during an anniversary cruise off Newport Bay.

Orange County Superior Court Judge Craig E. Robison made the document public after The Times challenged a court policy of sealing certain police reports in criminal cases.

The report says the break in the case came Oct. 29, when investigators “received new information regarding the death . . . which indicates that she was murdered by her husband.”

It doesn’t say what that information was, but Oct. 29 was the day Bechler’s ex-girlfriend wore a wiretap for sheriff’s deputies when meeting with Bechler. During the meeting, Bechler gave incriminating statements about his wife’s disappearance, according to law enforcement sources familiar with the investigation.

Prosecutors charged Bechler early last month with killing his wife for financial gain, a charge that carries a possible death penalty. His wife had a multimillion-dollar life insurance policy.

According to the police report, Pegye Bechler was lying on the boat when she was fatally struck with a dumbbell about 4 p.m. and thrown overboard.

A Coast Guard investigation into Pegye Bechler’s disappearance acknowledged that the couple had behaved recklessly while boating, drinking margaritas and taking the boat farther out to sea than their rental agreement allowed. But investigators also concluded that Bechler’s account of the accident could not be true.

Shortly after the July 6 incident, Coast Guard officers and sheriff’s deputies tested the Seaswirl Striper 2000 that the Bechlers had rented, performing high-speed stunts to replicate Bechler’s account of the accident.

“Based on sea trials with the vessel, it remains very unlikely Pegye Bechler was ejected from the vessel, never to resurface,” wrote Coast Guard investigator Lt. Kathy Moore in a 1997 letter to her supervisor.

People on another boat saw Bechler in the water on a boogie board, waving and wailing hoarsely. Close by, the Seaswirl was circling with no one aboard, the Coast Guard’s report said.

They offered Bechler a life jacket while he was in the water, but he refused to wear one.

“He was not taken aboard . . . as his behavior gave them concern for their safety,” the report said.

Two of the people in the boat that came to Bechler’s rescue are named in the police report made public Friday.

“We came across him after she disappeared,” said Richard Barton, a San Diego attorney. “We called the Coast Guard and stayed with him until they arrived.”

Barton said he could not comment on Bechler’s demeanor or other details because he may be called as a witness in the case.

“I really don’t want to answer any questions now,” he said. “It would not be fair to either side in the case.”

Deputy Dist. Atty. Debbie Lloyd said her office will determine whether to seek the death penalty sometime after the preliminary hearings, scheduled for Dec. 17.