Shooting suspect pleads not guilty

Claudia Figueroa

The man arrested in connection with the shooting of a Newport Beach

businessman pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted murder and

conspiracy Wednesday in Harbor Municipal Court.

Irvine police arrested Dino D’Saachs, 56, of Altadena, late Monday, about

12 hours after 58-year-old James Patrick Riley was shot in the face, the

bullet tearing through one cheek and out the other.

Riley, who owns Biofem, Inc., an Irvine-based research and development

company, was hospitalized for major facial injuries. He is in stable

condition.

Authorities said they do not believe D’Saachs was the shooter, but that

he helped the gunman escape from the scene.

Officers are still looking for two men who may have also been involved in

the attack on Riley.

“We believe one of those suspects is the actual gunman, and we’re not

quite sure what part the other man played in the shooting,” said Tori

Richards, a spokeswoman for the Orange County District Attorney’s office.

The charges against D’Saachs are as serious as they get, said defense

attorney Henry Salcedo. “Needless to say, my client is very concerned.”

Salcedo said his client does not know Riley. D’Saachs, a native of Peru,

owns a tax consulting business in Los Angeles.

“He is an entrepreneur and a success story,” explained Salcedo. “I’ve

known him for 15 years, so it’s difficult for me to believe Dino would be

involved in something like this. But now that I have the reports, I will

be able to take a closer look at what really happened.”

A pretrial is set for March 28. D’Saachs is being held without bail at

Orange County Jail.