Full Notification

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office is releasing the identities of the two people who were found deceased in Santa Ynez yesterday, October 31, 2015. The female victim is 57-year-old Lori Wolf-Pappas of Santa Ynez. The male decedent is her son, 21-year-old Maxwell Pappas of Santa Ynez. Both decedents had gunshot wounds to the head.
At this point the case is being investigated as a murder-suicide. Preliminary indications are that Maxwell Pappas was at his mother’s home in the 2000 block of Refugio Road and shot her to death. He then left the residence and was involved in a solo traffic collision in the 1500 block of Refugio Road following a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
Sheriff’s detectives are still investigating the circumstances that led up to this tragic event. Due to the ongoing, active investigation this is all the information that can be released at this time.
Anyone with information that would assist investigators in this case is asked to contact the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Criminal Investigations Division at 805-681-4150 or to leave an anonymous tip call 805-681-4171.