More face murder charges

Marisa O’Neil

NEWPORT BEACH-- Three men face murder charges in connection with the

disappearance and alleged homicide of a retired couple who lived on a

yacht in Newport Harbor, police said Friday.

The couple, 57-year-old Tom Hawks and Jackie Hawks, 47, were

killed for financial gain when they tried to sell Well Deserved,

their 55-foot cabin cruiser, Newport Beach Police Sgt. Steve Shulman

said. The Hawkses have been missing since mid-November, when they

told friends they were meeting with a potential buyer.

Their bodies have not been found, Shulman said.

Family members have long waited for any news about what happened

to Tom and Jackie Hawks.

“Justice is going to prevail,” said 27-year-old Ryan Hawks, son of

Tom Hawks and stepson of Jackie Hawks. “We’re going to get the

answers and get the truth. It’s hard living in the dark.”

One of the men charged, Long Beach resident Skylar DeLeon, 25, was

arrested in December on money laundering charges and later charged

with a grand theft unconnected to the Hawkses’ disappearance. DeLeon

told police that he had purchased Well Deserved for $400,000 cash,

but police say no money ever changed hands and documents involved in

the alleged transaction were falsified.

Police on Wednesday arrested Alonso Machain, 21, of Pico Rivera,

on suspicion of homicide. They arrested Myron Gadner, 41, of Long

Beach, on Thursday.

All three are charged with two counts of murder with special

circumstances of committing multiple murders and murder for financial

gain. Those circumstances make all three eligible for the death

penalty.

The three were scheduled to be formally charged Friday afternoon,

but their arraignments were postponed until April 15. They are being

held without bail in the Orange County Jail.

Jennifer DeLeon, the 23-year-old wife of Skylar DeLeon, came to

court Friday with the couple’s newborn son. Skylar DeLeon, who

attorneys said is a former child actor who appeared on the “Mighty

Morphin’ Power Rangers,” and his wife have another young child.

The Hawkses’ mysterious disappearance has left many wondering what

happened and how. Police on Friday released more information about

the case and what led to the arrests.

In the days leading up to the Hawkses’ disappearance, DeLeon and

Machain took several rides on the Well Deserved, Shulman said. The

last time anybody heard from the couple was on Nov. 15, when Jackie

Hawks left a message on a friend’s answering machine saying that they

were out at sea.

Shortly after that, both Tom and Jackie Hawks’ phones were turned

off.

DeLeon made two attempts to access the Hawkses’ bank account

following their disappearance, Shulman said. He also called an

Ensenada, Mexico, home where the Hawkses’ car was later found,

Shulman said.

Shulman also told reporters that a receipt for bleach and

heavy-gauge garbage bags, purchased by a family member of DeLeon,

were found on the boat. He would not elaborate on their significance.

More arrests may come in the case, and the investigation is

ongoing, Shulman said. Prosecutors are prepared to pursue the case

even without the Hawkses’ bodies, Senior Deputy Dist. Atty. Matt

Murphy said.

Members of Jackie Hawks’ family in Ohio suspected that their

daughter and son-in-law were dead, but hearing the news of the murder

charges hit them hard, said her mother, Gayle O’Neill.

“Hearing it is much worse,” O’Neill said. “It’s just devastating.

I don’t know if they’re ever going to find them. I don’t know if we

will ever have complete closure.”

Tom and Jackie Hawks were a happy, fun-loving couple who did more

in one year of their lives than most do in 10, Ryan Hawks said. They

loved traveling on their boat and “seeing the curve of the earth,” he

said.

“They wished for fair winds and a happy ending,” he said.

* MARISA O’NEIL covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (714) 966-4618 or by e-mail at marisa.oneil@ latimes.com.