Sean O'Neill; Ginger Lhotka
WAUKESHA, Wis. - A Waukesha man and woman are accused of shooting at his ex-wife's truck – and leaving fish inside the vehicle – causing an estimated $5,600 in damage.
In court
The backstory:
Prosecutors charged 33-year-old Sean O'Neill and 31-year-old Ginger Lhotka with the same three counts: stalking, criminal damage to property and misdemeanor disorderly conduct.
SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News
A search warrant was executed at O'Neill and Lhotka's home on March 4. O'Neill was taken into custody at that time, while court records show a warrant was issued for Lhotka's arrest. She was later taken unto custody.
Fish left in truck
According to a criminal complaint, O'Neill and the victim had recently gotten divorced. It was suspected that O'Neill and his new girlfriend, Lhotka, were involved due to "recent threats and other strange incidents" at the victim's home.
Sometime between roughly 7 p.m. on Feb. 3 and 7:30 a.m. on Feb. 4, court filings said the victim found "large chunks of salmon and fish ‘juice’" scattered inside her vehicle.
Bullet holes
The victim later reported her pickup truck had bullet holes in it. Court filings said it happened sometime between roughly 6:10 p.m. on Feb. 13, when she left town, and 5:45 p.m. on Feb. 15, when she came home.
Investigators noted four bullet holes in the truck, per the complaint, which was parked in the driveway of the victim's home. An officer collected bullet fragments from inside the truck, and the vehicle was driven to a police department evidence bay for further forensic analysis. Detectives determined the shots were fired "at an upward angle from the street or sidewalk area."
In an interview with detectives, the complaint states O'Neill later admitted he was involved in the salmon "fish juice" incident – but denied involvement in the shooting.
Video, cellphone evidence
Police reviewed a neighbor's doorbell camera video that included audible gunshots on Feb. 13. Court filings said the video showed a distinct white pickup truck in view around 6:15 p.m. that night – roughly a half-hour after the victim left. A distinct "wagon-like" vehicle was seen in the area just before 7 p.m. The victim also had a trail camera mounted on a tree in front of her home. It captured the "wagon-like" vehicle as well.
Prosecutors said detectives went to O'Neill and Lhotka's address and saw the distinct white truck parked outside. Police also saw Lhotka and O'Neill get into her brown Subaru SUV on Feb. 18. The Subaru matched the distinct "wagon-like" vehicle seen on video.
FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android
Detectives also learned O'Neill and Lhotka's cellphone numbers. The complaint states data placed them at the victim's home during the timeframe given for the salmon incident. It also placed them at the home at the times the vehicles were seen on surveillance and the gunshots were heard.
A review of O'Neill's phone further revealed text messages with Lhotka from Jan. 30 in which the complaint states they planned the salmon incident, during which Lhotka texted: "We cannot text this (expletive) lmao." Just before 6 p.m. on Feb. 13, Lhotka texted ONeill: "Wanna shoot her windows out still?" Court filings said that text was deleted from O'Neill's phone around 8 p.m. that night. Fifteen minutes later, an internet search was made for "do bullets spark when they hit metal."
Editor's note: This story was updated on March 20 to reflect Lhotka was taken into custody.
The Source: Information in this report is from the Waukesha County District Attorney's Office and Wisconsin Circuit Court.