Suspect’s 2nd wife turns up in England

Kim Smith

Friday, Feb. 25, 2000 | 12:10 p.m.

The second wife of a Lake Mead area resident suspected in the disappearance of his first wife is alive and living in England.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Damm said law enforcement officers in England have spoken to Patricia Molano Gutierrez, 30, and determined that she was OK.

Officials were concerned for her safety because David Kent Fitch's first wife, Maria Bozi, 46, hasn't been seen since September.

Damm said that at this point it appears as though Gutierrez may just be the victim of bigamy.

Damm and Assistant U.S. Public Defender Shari Kaufman spoke sparingly about Gutierrez following the arraignment this morning of Fitch, 41, on federal firearms charges.

Fitch pleaded not guilty to the charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Gutierrez is just one piece of the puzzle in the Fitch case.

Authorities believe Bozi, 46, disappeared between Sept. 4, when she last spoke by phone to the caretaker of her England property, and Sept. 7, when Fitch allegedly began withdrawing large sums of money from one of her bank accounts.

A convicted felon, Fitch isn't allowed to own or possess firearms. He was arrested earlier this month after authorities found weapons inside one of his storage units. Police were granted permission by Fitch to search the storage units after Fitch was stopped for speeding in Henderson while driving Bozi's Ford Thunderbird.

Fitch and Bozi were married in April 1999 in England and were living in a mobile home near Lake Mead when Bozi disappeared.

Damm said the mobile home was one of the places the FBI has searched over the past week, and the results of those searches were expected to be released later today.

According to authorities, in the weeks following Bozi's disappearance Fitch obtained birth certificates and passports in at least two other names. He also traveled to England under the name of David Krause and married Gutierrez in January.

Fitch told neighbors and Bozi's caretaker that Bozi had flown to Vancouver, British Columbia, and he told National Park Service rangers she had gone home to her native Romania.

Fitch's neighbors in Boulder City told The Sun that Fitch also gave them conflicting information about his career. Ken Housman said Fitch told him he was an overseas engineer, but told others he was either a crop duster or a chiropractor.

When U.S. Magistrate Robert Johnston asked Fitch this morning how far he had gone in school, Fitch said he went to junior college but did not graduate.

Damm declined to comment further on the investigation, other than to say it is ongoing.

Anyone who saw Bozi and Fitch together or anyone who knew Fitch is asked to call the FBI at 385-1281.