APTOS — Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s deputies are investigating an apparent murder-suicide after a man reportedly shot and killed his wife and then himself in their residence in the Aptos hills Sunday.
Several crime scene technicians were inside the residence at 506 Cuesta Drive Monday morning.
Investigators believe that Robert Mann, 56, shot his wife Janell Lund-Mann, 45, and then committed suicide, but what led up to the shootings is still unclear, said Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Sgt. Dee Baldwin.
According to the Santa Cruz County Superior Court website, the couple was going through a divorce, with a “proof of service” occurring on June 11, and a status conference scheduled on Aug. 19.
Lund-Mann served on the board of directors of the Loma Prieta Region Porsche Club of America. In the driveway sat a newer-model Porsche Cayenne, next to an older model 914. A third Porsche sat in the garage, officers said.
Lund-Mann
Deputies responded to conduct a welfare check at the residence just after 7 p.m. after relatives arrived and noticed some “concerning things.”
When they arrived they found a dead woman just inside the doorway, and discovered a man’s body elsewhere in the house, Baldwin said.
“We handle it as the most severe type of crime that we can handle,” Baldwin said. “A number of resources are investigating this, and we will do everything we can to determine what led up to this and ultimately the way that everything happened.”
Baldwin said that there have been no prior calls to the residence, and a weapon has been recovered.
“This is an isolated event involving a domestic relationship, so we have no reason to think that there is anybody outstanding that could be responsible for this or any additional neighborhood concerns that would cause any ongoing concerns for the neighbors,” Baldwin said.
The residence is located in an upscale neighborhood of two-story homes in the Aptos Hills, many of which have views of the ocean in the distance.
Neighbor John Eaton said the couple was quiet and kept to themselves. He added that they recently renovated the house.
Anyone with information about the couple is asked to call Detective Sergeant Jacob Ainsworth at 454-7635.
