Surgeon Charged with Attempted Murder in Santa Barbara

A San Jose surgeon who is charged with the attempted murder of a court-ordered observer Sunday in the parking lot of Goleta’s Zodo’s Bowling and Beyond was arrested in Whitefish, Montana, this morning. Theresa Lynn Colosi was on a supervised visit with her 12-year-old son when she struck the observer with a metal object at Zodo’s at about 9:30 a.m. December 8, according to Montana media and Santa Barbara’s Sheriff’s Office. The observer sustained severe injuries to her head and face but told the child to run to Zodo’s for help, according to the County Sheriff’s Office. Colosi fled the scene in a car, while bystanders called 9-1-1.

Sheriff’s detectives discovered Colosi had chartered a private jet out of Lompoc Airport, which flew to Glacier International Airport in Montana at around 10:48 a.m. on Sunday. An orthopedic surgeon, Colosi had previously given away her belongings, withdrawn $900,000 from her bank account, and chartered the flight under fictitious names for herself, her son, and her dog. Lompoc Health posted a statement that Colosi had an office in a Lompoc Valley Medical Center building but never used it and had no professional relationship with them.

Colosi was arrested on a $1 million warrant as she got into a cab in Whitefish, the Montana papers stated. She’s being held without bail at Flathead County Detention Center until she can be extradited to Santa Barbara on attempted murder and attempted kidnapping charges.

Correction: This story was changed to clarify Colosi is charged with attempted murder, not murder, and that the incident occurred on December 8, not the 10th.