San Jose police on Tuesday officially named the deceased father of a 3-year-old Mountain View girl who was found dead at a recycling facility as the suspect in the homicide case.
Ellie Obi Lorenzo, who was reported missing out of Fremont late last week after she wasn't returned to her mother as part of a custody agreement, was found dead Saturday morning at a recycling facility in the 600 block of Charles Street in San Jose, according to police. Her father, 42-year-old Jared Lorenzo, is believed to have played a role in her death, but he himself was later found dead in San Francisco.
Ellie was last seen alive Thursday evening with her father at a home in Fremont, according to police. Detectives determined that Jared and Ellie then drove to his apartment in Fremont.
The following day, Jared left his home just after 6 a.m. and drove to San Jose. He removed Ellie's body from the trunk of his car and disposed of her in a trash receptacle, police said.
The receptacle was later emptied by the garbage company and transferred to the facility on Charles Street, police said.
Jared later drove to multiple cities before finally stopping in San Francisco, where he was found dead shortly after 11 a.m., according to police.
The cause and manner of Ellie's death remain under investigation, police said.
Ellie's mother released the following statement on Tuesday:
"We are all heartbroken at the loss of our sweet little Ellie. Ellie was stolen from me, her grandmother, and the rest of our family and friends in an evil and brutal manner. For years I feared constantly for Ellie’s well-being in the hands of her father even with his limited access under shared custody. I wanted desperately for her constant supervision and worried for her safety each time she was with him for court ordered visitation. Yet the system continued to grant him partial custody and unsupervised access. Last Tuesday, I finally received confirmation that the courts would allow me to move with Ellie out of state, of which he also became aware. On Thursday morning, I kissed my daughter goodbye at our home in Mountain View where she lived and attended preschool, and I said “I love you” as she left for court ordered visitation with her father. But my daughter never returned. Her father killed her and went to great lengths to cover his crime by moving her to a different city, hiding her body in a bag inside a box inside a dumpster, and driving to another city to take his own life.
We are experiencing an unbearable pain and our grief is overwhelming. I will share more of my story after I have had the time to mourn with my family. We humbly ask for privacy as we grieve the heartbreaking loss of our sweet Ellie."
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