Theo Lengyel, once an integral member of the avant-garde jazz-metal group Mr. Bungle, is now a murder suspect accused of killing his girlfriend, Alice “Alyx” Kamakaokalani Herrmann, last month.
Police in Capitola, California, arrested the musician, age 54, on Tuesday and booked him on one count of first-degree murder in Santa Cruz County Jail. He is being held without bail, according to KRON.
San Francisco Chronicle reports that Lengyel had been a “person of interest” since Herrmann, 61, went missing on Dec. 3. Human remains, which authorities believe to be Herrmann’s, were found in Tilden Regional Park, and her car was last seen in front of Lengyel’s home. Lengyel was uncooperative with investigators, according to the El Cerrito Police Department. Her family reported her missing after she missed a flight to Hawaii, after which Lengyel reportedly went to Portland, Oregon.
The Contra Costa County Coroner’s Office has yet to verify whether the remains found belong to Herrmann with DNA.
“The diligent work of our investigators, in coordination with our law enforcement partners, has led to the apprehension of (Theobald) Lengel [sic] in connection with the tragic homicide of Alice Kamakaokalanil [sic],” Capitola police wrote in a statement. “We extend our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the victim during this difficult time.”
A motive for the alleged homicide is unknown.
Lengyel was previously named in a domestic violence case, according to KRCR, filed by his wife at the time. She obtained a restraining order against him in 2017, and the couple filed for divorce later that year.
Lengyel was a member of Mr. Bungle from 1985 through 1996. He played saxophone and clarinet on the band’s first two major label albums, 1991’s Mr. Bungle and 1995’s Disco Volante. “We unanimously decided to go on without [Lengyel] because he wasn’t growing with the rest of the band and we were running out of things for him to do,” the band’s Trevor Dunn wrote in a fan Q&A on his website in 2005. “He got pissed off and I haven’t heard from him since.”