In a heart-wrenching tragedy, three-year-old Ellie Lorenzo, reported missing from Fremont, California, was found dead at a recycling facility in San Jose on July 13, 2024. This discovery followed shortly after her father, Jared Lorenzo, was found dead in San Francisco. Authorities are treating the incident as a homicide.
Ellie was reported missing by her mother, Chrystal Obi, on July 12 after learning that Jared Lorenzo had been found dead in San Francisco. “The child’s mother received information that the father had died in San Francisco and that the child was not with him at the time,” Fremont Police Sgt. Kim McDonald said. Authorities began a search, leading them to Jared’s apartment in Fremont, but Ellie was not found there.
Ellie’s body was discovered at a recycling facility in San Jose in the early hours of July 13. An employee found her and contacted the police. “We always strive to understand why this occurred and whether there was something we could have done to prevent it,” San Jose Police Sgt. Jorge Garibay stated during a news conference. “However, it will never make sense to us in this situation. The tragic loss of a three-year-old will never make sense.”
Investigators have named Lorenzo, who had shared custody of Ellie as part of a court-ordered agreement, as a suspect in her death. Police believe that on July 12, when he was supposed to return Ellie to her mother as part of their custody agreement, Jared left his apartment in Fremont around 6 a.m., drove to San Jose, and disposed of Ellie’s body in a trash container. This container was later emptied and transported to the recycling facility, where her body was found.
The suspect then drove to San Francisco’s Tenderloin district, where he jumped from a building in an apparent suicide shortly after 11 a.m. the same day. The circumstances of his death and the exact cause of Ellie’s death are still under investigation.
“Ellie was surrounded by numerous people who loved her deeply and will miss her more than words can express,” Chrystal Obi said in a statement to NBC Bay Area. “We are experiencing unbearable pain and our grief is overwhelming. We are all heartbroken at the loss of our sweet little Ellie,” Chrystal added. “Ellie was taken from me, her grandmother, and all of our family and friends cruelly and violently.”
The Fremont Police Department and the San Jose Police Department’s Homicide Unit are working together to piece together the events leading to this outcome. Detectives are asking anyone with information related to the case to come forward.
Lorenzo, 42, lived in Fremont and shared custody of Ellie with Chrystal. Their relationship had been fraught with legal battles, and Chrystal had expressed concerns about Ellie’s safety during visitations with her father. “For years, I feared constantly for Ellie’s well-being in the hands of her father, even with his limited access under shared custody,” Chrystal said. “Last Tuesday, I finally got confirmation that the courts would permit me to relocate with Ellie out of state, and he found out about this as well.”
The case has sent shockwaves through the community, leaving many in mourning. San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan extended his condolences, emphasizing that the police department is committed to finding answers. “Ellie deserved better,” the San Jose Police Department stated. “May she rest in peace.”