Countdown To Capture For Millionaire On U.S. 15 Most Wanted List

NEWPORT BEACH, CA — The Newport Beach police and the U.S. Marshals Service together with the Orange County District Attorney's office discussed their intensified search for the man who slipped through their fingers three years ago. Peter Chadwick, now 54, is accused of murdering his wife, dumping her body and vanishing in 2015. On Wednesday the U.S. Marshals announced that Chadwick has reached the 15 most wanted fugitive list, David Singer, U.S. Marshal said.

"It isn't a matter of if he will be captured, but when," Singer said at a Wednesday morning conference.

Six years after the initial arrest there has been no satisfaction in seeing Chadwick reach trial, Newport Beach Police Chief John Lewis said. "We've never given up on locating him to bring justice for those who loved her. He could be anywhere in the world, NBPD said. "We want to spread his picture and his story world wide."

The Newport Beach Police Department is releasing a podcast, 6 episodes of 15 min each, describing the case and how Chadwick has escaped capture. To date, two episodes have aired in this "true crime" retelling of the Chadwick murder.

This story, narrated in Manzella's steady, hypnotic cadence describes not just the case but the nature of the crime, the story as it unfolded, starting with the children left at school with no one to collect them. Then it goes to the neighbors, concerned for the Chadwick parents' well being. Finally, we hear from the police, who discover a bloody crimes scene at the upscale Newport Beach home while looking for a devoted mother who vanished. More episodes will be released over the coming weeks until the full story is told, NBPD said.

Chadwick escaped without notice between court sessions, Rackauckas explained to reporters present.

There was "no reason to think he would run," he said at the conference. Chadwick was out on $1 million bail on a first degree murder charge, and made 13 court appearances, until Nov. of 2015. He did not appear for his next court date. His passport had been seized, to make it more difficult to travel. It is not currently known if he was traveling under an assumed name.

"He might have changed his name, changed his look, and may be traveling under an assumed name, but we believe that the $100,000 reward will encourage someone to turn him in," Rackauckas said. "We have a great cooperation with other countries through the state department and will get him back."

A federal arrest warrant was filed in October by the U.S. Marshals Service for Peter Chadwick, who lived in Newport Beach. Peter Chadwick emptied millions out of his accounts, cleared out credit cards and has been known to travel globally.

"This is still an open investigation, we cannot share many details," NBPD spokesperson Jennifer Manzella said. "We are hoping that these outreach efforts will help in locating Mr. Chadwick and bringing him to justice."

The Newport Beach Police have admitted that Chadwick could be anywhere in the world, living off his many millions but as Rackauckas reminded, there is no safe harbor when there is a reward on the line.

"Mr Chadwick, you're in a bad situation, here. You're a fugitive from justice, there is a $100,000 reward on your head, and everyone in the world is looking for you," OCDA Tony Rackauckas said. "Do yourself a favor and turn yourself in."

Circumstances of the case...

Chadwick originally went missing in January 2015. He called police in October 2012 alleging that a handyman killed his wife, Quee Choo Lim Chadwick and then kidnapped him and forced him to drive to Mexico to dump her body, according to Craig McCluskey of the U.S. Marshals Service.

However, San Diego police, who arrested Chadwick four miles north of the Mexico border, noticed he had scratches on his neck and "dried blood on his hands," according to McCluskey. Investigators subsequently found a "crime scene" at the Chadwick home, and after questioning Chadwick, he led detectives a gas station trash bin where his wife's body had been dumped, McCluskey said.

"Chadwick admitted that he made up the story about the handyman killing his wife," McCluskey wrote.
Newport Beach police and the Marshals Service will hold a news conference at 10 Wednesday morning to discuss the case.

Chadwick was arrested but was released Dec. 21, 2012, on $2 million bond. He surrendered his British and American passports and agreed to live with his father, "a wealthy investor," in Santa Barbara, McCluskey wrote in the warrant.

When Newport Beach detectives went to talk to Chadwick at his father's home after he missed a court date in January 2015, they were told the defendant was not living there. No one knew where he was, McCluskey wrote.

Chadwick's family told investigators in February that Chadwick informed them he was going to Seattle and left in a cab, McCluskey said.

"At the residence, I saw several books with titles indicative of a person wanting to flee a jurisdiction, including, while not verbatim, titles such as `How to Change Your Identity,' `How to Live on the Run Successfully' and `Surviving in Mexico,"' McCluskey said.

Chadwick called for a cab at 11 a.m. Jan. 9, 2015, and was taken to the Santa Barbara airport, McCluskey said.
"Video from the airport showed Chadwick leaving the airport in a different taxicab six hours later wearing different clothing," McCluskey wrote. "According to phone records later obtained, Chadwick's cellphone was turned off on Jan. 9, 2015, and was later found in a trash dump."

An arrest warrant was issued Feb. 11, 2015.

Bank records indicate Chadwick drained $600,000 from a bank account in mid-January, McCluskey said.
The defendant's son told investigators in February 2015 that his father had been planning to flee since Nov. 28, 2014, McCluskey said.

Chadwick's son told investigators that his father planned "to exit the United States via the Mexico or Canadian international borders, by driving there and walking across," McCluskey said.

Chadwick's son said his father had "a large sum of money at his disposal and would establish himself in a foreign country by obtaining a place to live and getting a menial job," McCluskey wrote.

Investigators believe Chadwick fled with "several million dollars in assets, as well as large amounts of available cash," McCluskey wrote.

Before he became a fugitive, Chadwick would frequently visit China, Malaysia, Canada and Thailand, McCluskey said.

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Photo courtesy Newport Beach Police Department