Transient accused of killing woman at Costa Mesa park

A woman whose body was found Wednesday in brush at Talbert Regional Park in Costa Mesa was identified as Ashley Boulay, 29, police said Friday.

Daniel Correa, 24, who was arrested in connection with her death, was charged with murder Thursday.

Boulay and Correa were both described as transients. Authorities said Boulay previously lived in Massachusetts, Correa in Santa Ana.

The Orange County district attorney’s office alleges that Correa killed Boulay with a tree branch at the nature preserve on Victoria Street.

Police said Boulay’s body had signs of blunt force trauma, but they did not detail her injuries.

Costa Mesa detectives began investigating Boulay’s death as a homicide after receiving a call at 7:10 a.m. Wednesday from a man, later identified as Correa, who said he had found a woman’s body in the park, police said. It isn’t clear how authorities came to suspect Correa in the crime.

Correa, who is listed in jail records as a warehouse worker, was booked into Orange County Jail on Wednesday. His bail is set at $1 million. He is expected to be arraigned March 16.

Correa also is facing a possible sentencing enhancement on allegations of using a deadly weapon, according to Orange County Superior Court records.

If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 26 years to life in prison.