Jorge Tovar Fernandez
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY — Disputes over parental custody rights often prove how fragile romantic relationships can be, frequently become the wellspring of dangerous levels of domestic enmity, and rarely become the source of homicidal intent upon a former loved one.
One of those rare episodes of murderous rage overshadowing former affection surfaced on April 16th, Easter Sunday, when 28-year-old Orcutt resident Elyse Marie Erwin was found dead on the ground just outside her car, the victim of a single gunshot wound to the head.
Elyse Marie Erwin
The death of the young mother and catering coordinator was immediately responded to by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department with what SBSD Public Information Officer Kelly Hoover described as “a comprehensive investigation to identify and locate the person responsible.”
That effort soon focused on the father of Erwin’s 6-year-old child, 26-year-old Jorge Tovar Fernandez, “who goes by the last name Tovar,” a resident of Lompoc. Immediately following the discovery of Erwin’s murder, Tovar was contacted and questioned, but was not at that time taken into custody.
Three days later, while attending a child custody hearing at the Santa Maria Courthouse, Tovar found himself face-to-face with detectives who by that time had assembled sufficient evidence to provide probable cause for his arrest.
Tovar was promptly transported to Santa Barbara County Jail, where he was booked on a charge of first degree murder and is currently held without bail. According to Hoover, the child was initially placed into the custody of Santa Barbara County Child Welfare Services, “but is now being cared for by family members.”
Photos: Courtesy Santa Barbara County Sheriff, Santa Barbara County Jail Booking.
