A man was arrested Tuesday morning on suspicion of killing his girlfriend, Alice “Alyx” Kamakaokalani Herrmann of Capitola.
Theobald “Theo” Lengyel, 54, was found near Davenport in the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s jurisdiction after an arrest warrant was issued. He was taken into custody by SCSO deputies and Capitola Police without incident. Lengyel was booked into Santa Cruz County Jail.
The investigation led investigators to Tilden Regional Park in Berkeley where they recovered human remains in a wooded area. The identification of the remains is pending DNA confirmation from the Contra Costa County Coroner’s Office.
Police say that as their investigation progressed it became clear that foul play was involved, leading to the identification of Lengyel as a suspect.
The arrest came after Herrmann, 61, was declared a missing person earlier in December. She was last seen in Santa Cruz at a rowing event on Dec. 3, and an investigation into her disappearance began on Dec. 12, with police identifying the disappearance as suspicious.
Lengyel was identified as a suspect early into the investigation, and according to a press release from the Capitola Police, investigators said they found evidence connecting Lengyel to Herrmann’s death.
According to Rolling Stone magazine, Lengyel was a founding member of the popular funk metal musical band, Mr. Bungle. The group emerged from Humboldt County in the mid-1980s with Lengyel on the saxophone. The group lasted about a decade.
Capitola Police have been working with El Cerrito Police Department, where Lengyel reportedly lives, along with Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s Office and other agencies on the case.
