Bail Hiked for Suspect in Slaying

A judge Tuesday doubled the bail of a man arrested on suspicion of killing a 29-year-old plumber during a road-rage incident in Anaheim in December.

Orange County Superior Court Judge Roger Robbins set bail at $2 million for Ituau Ulinai Leausoga, 19, who is accused of fatally shooting Michael Lee Decker. Robbins also assigned a public defender to the case and scheduled Leausoga’s arraignment for April 30.

“We had a hard time finding him,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Howard Gundy, who had requested the bail increase because he believed Leausoga posed a flight risk. “His family didn’t know where he was. We didn’t know where he was.”

Leausoga, also known as Mapu Kevin Neau, had eluded police for four months before being arrested Thursday without incident while visiting a relative’s gravesite at a cemetery in the 1700 block of Fairhaven Avenue in Santa Ana. Police said they had received a tip about his cemetery visit.

He had been sought since the Dec. 2 shooting on the Orange Freeway, which began when one car cut off another. A brief chase ensued between a Honda carrying Leausoga and companion, and a Mustang with Decker and his stepbrother. When the cars stopped, Decker got out of his car to confront the men in the Honda and was shot, police said.

Police arrested Jose Rodriquez, 18, of Westminster, who they say was driving the Honda. He faces a murder charge with a maximum penalty of 25 years to life. Authorities accuse Leausoga of being the shooter, and he could be sentenced to 50 years to life if convicted. His lawyer could not be reached for comment.