Status Conference Scheduled for Man Accused of Murdering Monrovia Mother

MONROVIA, CA -- A status conference hearing is scheduled Friday for a 49-year-old man who is charged with murdering his ex-girlfriend, a Monrovia mother of two whose body was discovered in her car in 2015.

Jose Roberto Turner was charged in August 2015 with killing Lajoya McCoy, who was found dead June 16, 2015, in the 200 block of Cypress Avenue.

The 31-year-old woman was reported missing after she missed some appointments, and detectives went to her home in the 800 block of West Olive Avenue and discovered evidence of foul play.

Monrovia police called in sheriff’s homicide detectives, and McCoy’s car was found during a grid search of the area.

Authorities have not disclosed how McCoy died, but the murder charge includes an allegation that Turner used a rope or cord as a deadly weapon during the crime, which the criminal complaint says occurred “on or about June 10.”

McCoy worked as an accountant with the County of Los Angeles and owned a clothing boutique. Friends said her two children, then ages 7 and 9, were staying with their father when she went missing.

Turner was arrested Aug. 27, 2015, and has been behind bars since then.

--City News Service contributed this report.