On the morning of December 22, 2023, a domestic disturbance call in Santa Maria led officers to a home in the Lavigna gated community on the 1300 block of Dolcetto Lane. Inside, 43-year-old Black woman Johannes Katya Johnson was found with critical gunshot wounds. First responders attempted life-saving measures, but Johnson was pronounced dead at the scene, the sixth homicide recorded in Santa Maria in 2023.

Present when officers arrived was Johnson’s husband, 60-year-old Anthony Kevin Larks. He was taken into custody without incident and identified by investigators as the primary suspect. The Santa Barbara County District Attorney filed a criminal complaint charging Larks with murder, assault with a firearm, criminal threats, and child abuse under conditions likely to cause great bodily injury or death, plus a special allegation for intentional discharge of a handgun. A prosecutor said some charges relate to a young daughter and a nephew. Larks pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in late December 2023 and the case was proceeding through the courts.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Kevin Ochoa of the Santa Maria Police Department at 805-928-3781 ext. 2460.