Dateline: Who was Lonnie Kocontes and what do we know about his crimes? Details of the 2006 incident, explored

Dateline in 2023 featured another devastating case of disappearance and murder when a cruise trip, which was meant to be a new beginning for the couple going through a divorce, took an unexpected turn.

Micki Kanesaki, 52, and Lonnie Kocontes, 62, got married in 1995 and were living together even after their divorce in 2002. During the voyage, when the ship was deep into the Mediterranean Sea, Micki vanished.

Lonnie then called some of her close friends, leaving them in disbelief. Later, around May 28, Micki's body was found floating near the Italian coast. According to the Dateline interviews, only two possibilities were possible: either she accidentally drowned in the water or someone meticulously planned and murdered her.

Dateline: Who was Lonnie Kocontes, and what do we know about his crimes?

Lonnie Kocontes is a former California attorney practising in the same firm where Micki was also a paralegal professional. They met and got married in 1995. In 2002, they started having trouble in their marriage and got divorced, but the couple chose to live together as they had some joint bank accounts and mutual wills.

When the investigation unfolded, it pointed towards Lonnie as the prime suspect. Lonnie, after reporting her missing, returned to California, while her body was found in Italy, Paola. A major revelation happened when the autopsy report revealed signs of severe neck strangulation, skull fracture, and bruises. It confirmed that Micki was dead before being drowned in the water. There was no water found in her lungs. All of this evidence suggested a murder and not a suicide or an accident.

Kocontes was supposed to receive a gain of $1 million from his shared bank account with Micki. In Micki's will, he was named as the beneficiary and executor. In 2008, he attempted to transfer the funds into his account, which led to the FBI's involvement and the subsequent forfeiture of the civil asset.

Lonnie Kocontes was arrested for murdering his ex-wife

In 2002, after the couple got divorced, Kocontes began an intimate relationship with Amy Nguyen, whom he had met online, without Micki's knowledge. In 2005, he married Nguyen in Las Vegas and moved in with her in Orange County. Later in 2005, he forced Kanesaki to sell their Ladera Ranch home. Then he moved back with Kanesaki, but all this while he maintained a secret relationship with Nguyen.

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He updated the wills so that he would become the executor of Kanesaki's estate. He then proposed going on a cruise, giving Micki a hope of reconciliation. He booked a less common cruise route that requires multiple flights, and he was also aware of the ship's security system. He requested a balcony cabin specifically. According to the authorities, he strangled Micki in the cabin and dumped her body into the water.

He was arrested in February 2013 in Florida and extradited to California. This time, he was charged with first-degree murder with a special circumstance of murdering for financial gain. Finally, he was convicted in June 2020 and sentenced in September 2020 to life in prison without parole, as shown on Dateline.

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