A Santa Maria woman has been accused of using a firearm to commit the murder of a man whose dismembered remains were found in a pond at a Nipomo golf course, according to a criminal complaint filed Thursday in Santa Barbara County Superior Court.
Kimberly Lynn Machleit, 35, has been charged with murder along special allegations for use of a firearm, while Donald Andrew Anderson, 37, has been charged with being an accessory to the murder,
She has been accused of killing Joseph Martin Govey on or around Dec. 2 or 3, 2018. The criminal complaint did not include his age or hometown.
Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office detectives arrested Machleit and Anderson earlier this week after dive team members conducted a search at a golf course on the 1400 block of Golf Course Lane at Blacklake Golf Resort in Nipomo.
Govey’s suspected remains were recovered from a lake on the property.
Investigators believe the victim was murdered in the city of Santa Maria and dismembered before being disposed of at the golf course in December 2018.
Since the suspects and the victim knew each other, investigators do not believe it was a random act of violence.
Machleit and Anderson were expected to make their first court appearance Thursday for an arraignment hearing.
If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 50 years to life in prison.
The maximum penalty on the accessory charge against Anderson is three years.
Both remain in custody of the Santa Barbara County Jail, with her bail set at $2 million and his at $1 million.
Machleit and Anderson also face a number of felony charges stemming from their arrest last month involving narcotics and weapons.
She has been charged with two counts of possession of a firearms by a felon, possession of ammunition and possession of short-barreled rifle/shotgun.
In that case, Anderson has been charged with five counts of possession of firearms by a felon, possession of a controlled substance for sale, possession of ammunition and possession of a short-barreled rifle/shotgun.
A third person, Kevin Anderson, 27, of Tustin, arrested with the pair in connection with that case has been charged with possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of a controlled subsstance for sale and possession/purchase of a controlled substance for sale.
— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.