Former Mr. Bungle member Theobald "Theo" Brooks Lengyel has been found guilty of first-degree murder after killing his girlfriend, Alice "Alyx" Kamakaokalani Herrmann.
The jury heard an audio recording of thr 55-year-old Lengyel strangling the 61-year-old Herrmann in her home in Capitola, CA. On the recording, Lengyel can reportedly be heard saying, "You're gonna fucking die right now. Are you ready?"
Herrmann was last seen on December 3, 2023; her body was found in Berkeley, CA's Tilden Regional Park, leading to Lengyel's arrest on January 2. The jury deliberated for one day in a Santa Cruz courtroom before delivering the guilty verdict.
Lengyel faces life in prison. California does have the death penalty, but the state hasn't executed a prisoner since 2006.
Lengyel was a member of Mr. Bungle for more than a decade from 1985 to 1996, playing saxophone and keyboards. He played on their early demo releases as well as their first two official albums, 1991's Mr. Bungle and 1995's Disco Volante.
Blabbermouth points out that Lengyel left the band acrimoniously. "We unanimously decided to go on without him because he wasn't growing with the rest of the band and we were running out of things for him to do," bassist Trevor Dunn said in 2005. "He got pissed off and I haven't heard from him since."