Husband turns himself in for 2022 hit-and-run murder of his wife in Montecito

MONTECITO, Calif. – The Santa Barbara County District Attorney's Office announced on Tuesday morning that Jose Roberto Munoz Sanchez, 39, of Oxnard, turned himself in for the 2022 hit-and-run murder of his wife, Blanca Aguilera, in Montecito.

The DA's office said Munoz Sanchez turned himself in at the U.S. - Mexico border, and later apprehended by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office.

On Sept. 29, 2022, according to the sheriff's office, deputies responded to the 800-block of East Mountain Dr. around 5:35 a.m. for a report of a woman heard screaming.

Deputies arrived to find a seriously injured woman, later identified as Aguilera, laying in the road, and transported her to a hospital.

The car that struck Aguilera had fled the area before law enforcement arrived, but detectives said that the driver and the victim were known to each other – that this was not a random attack.

Aguilera died from her injuries at the hospital.

The DA's office said it filed a complaint last year charging Munoz Sanchez with the First Degree Murder of his wife, Aguilera.

The Oxnard man appeared in court on Monday, Oct. 23, and his bail was set at $2 million. The DA's office said his arraignment was continued to Oct. 30 at 1:30 p.m.

This is a developing story. More information will be provided as updates come into the newsroom.

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