Woman Accused of Killing Ex-Boyfriend in His IB Apartment Found Mentally Competent

A woman accused of gunning down her ex-boyfriend inside his Imperial Beach apartment after stalking and harassing him for a year is mentally competent to stand trial on a murder charge, a judge ruled Thursday.

A mental competency trial was scheduled for Vegas Bray, but both sides stipulated to a doctor's findings that the defendant understood the charges against her and could assist her attorney at trial.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 3 at the South Bay Courthouse.

Bray, 25, is charged with first-degree murder in the Oct. 16, 2012, death of 31-year-old Victor Saucedo, who she met while they were both in the Navy and started dating in 2010. The relationship lasted for several months and ended toward the later part of 2011.

Authorities said the couple broke up because Bray was jealous of the mother of Saucedo's child, but Bray continued to pursue the victim.

Bray committed seven acts of vandalism against Saucedo's car and apartment, including popping his car tires, smearing peanut butter on his door and even tracking him down after he changed apartments, Deputy District Attorney Harrison Kennedy alleged at an earlier hearing.

The couple had some "social interaction" the day before the slaying in which there was talk of rekindling the relationship, but Saucedo said he wasn't interested in the long-term relationship that Bray wanted, according to Kennedy.

Bray allegedly felt "spurned" and left the victim's apartment the next morning, then returned that afternoon with a .38-caliber revolver and shot Saucedo nine times. She called 911 after the shooting to report that Saucedo had committed suicide, according to police.