One of the three people authorities believe was involved in the 2018 killing of a Santa Maria man has pleaded guilty. The Santa Barbara County D.A.’s office says 34-year-old Benjamin Mersai pleaded guilty to a voluntary manslaughter charge for his level of involvement in the murder of Joseph Martin Govey. Govey’s remains were discovered in a lake at Blacklake Golf Resort in Nipomo. The two other suspects, Kimberly Machleit still faces a murder charge and Donald Anderson is accused of being an accessory to murder.
