Bail revocation sought for attorney accused in shooting of former wife

Kim Smith

Friday, June 15, 2001 | 10:20 a.m.

Prosecutors are seeking to revoke the bail of a Las Vegas attorney accused of shooting his former wife to death just days after their divorce.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Christopher Laurent told District Judge Mark Gibbons Thursday that Alfred Centofanti III has committed fraud twice since his release on house arrest and is likely to flee Las Vegas.

Laurent told Gibbons that Centofanti and Virginia Centofanti, 25, co-owned a condominium in San Diego and continued to own it together after the divorce became final on Dec. 12.

Upon Virginia Centofanti's death Dec. 20, her portion of the home was to go to her estate, Laurent said. Centofanti told his bail bond company, however, that he alone owned the home when he used it as collateral for bail.

Worse, Laurent said, Centofanti later sold the condo -- filing a deed listing himself as a widower and not telling her family.

Laurent said Centofanti, a business lawyer who has passed two bar exams, clearly knew what he was doing was fradulent.

In fact, Centofanti successfully filed a motion to seal his divorce file in Clark County Family Court so no one conducting a title search could learn he did not own the home alone, Laurent said. That paperwork was filed one day after Virginia Centofanti was slain.

Gibbons was supposed to decide Thursday if Centofanti's bail should be revoked, but before the proceeding could start, Laurent told the judge he believes Centofanti may have to get a new attorney.

Daniel Albregts, Centofanti's current attorney, filed an affidavit containing information he could only have gotten from his client, Laurent said.

As a result, Laurent said he believes Centofanti waived his attorney-client priviledge and Albregts could be called to testify at his trial.

That affidavit has been sealed by a Family Court judge, but Laurent said the information contained within it pertains to Centofanti's motive to murder his wife.

Albregts, caught off guard, asked Gibbons for time to prepare a response to Laurent's theory.

Gibbons scheduled a hearing for Monday. He denied Laurent's motion to jail Centofanti in the meantime.

According to police, Centofanti shot Virginia Centofanti between five and seven times when she came to pick up their 4-month-old son for a visit.

He allegedly used a 9 mm Ruger handgun police had seized from the Centofantis after a domestic violence incident two weeks earlier and that had been released to him earlier that day.

According to court documents filed by Laurent, Virginia Centofanti told police after the Dec. 5 fight that her husband had held a gun to her head and threatened to kill her, their son and her child from a previous relationship.

She said that during a struggle she received a split lip. She also admitted she hit him over the head with a picture frame.

Centofanti denied the allegations about the threats and his wife was arrested for battery domestic violence.

Laurent's motion indicates Centofanti took out a temporary protective order against his wife the next day, falsely claiming the 9 mm gun was hers.

Laurent alleges that Centofanti is a manipulative man who tried everything to get his wife back and is now trying to manipulate the system and remain free on bail.

In his motion, Laurent alleges that Centofanti was upset when Virginia Centofanti told him in November 2000 she wanted a divorce, saying he would rather kill her. The death threats, getting her arrested and taking full custody of their son was his way of trying to change her mind, Laurent said.

Centofanti also went so far as to tell people his wife had a drug and alcohol problem when there is no such evidence, Laurent said.

"Gina didn't care and just wanted out of the relationship," Laurent wrote. "When this tactic did not result in Gina returning to him, he sought to get his guns back and resorted to fatal violence."

"This type of manipulation is indicative of the defendant's anger management problem, volatility and threat to the community," Laurent wrote.