SANTA CLARITA : Slaying Suspect Arrested After Calling TV Station

A man suspected of killing his ex-girlfriend in Saugus surrendered to police Wednesday after calling a Los Angeles television station to say he would give himself up if a reporter would first interview him, authorities said.

Mark Mearl Bowersock, 38, is accused of shooting Laurel Ann Prejean, 36, at her sister’s home Friday. It was the first murder reported in the Santa Clarita area in more than a year.

Authorities had issued an arrest warrant for Bowersock, released from jail just five days before the slaying. He had violated probation on a 1994 conviction of beating another former girlfriend.

Bowersock called KCAL-TV from a North Hills motel about 8:30 a.m. Wednesday.

“He was really upset, he was crying,” said Bernice Hyman, a KCAL newsroom assistant who answered Bowersock’s call. “He said, ‘I’m ready to turn myself in, and I want to talk to a reporter before I do that.’ ”

Bowersock said “the whole story wasn’t being told” about the killing, said Chuck Hollis, the station’s assignment editor.

Station officials told Bowersock they would have Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies with them when they came to the motel. “Here’s a guy charged with killing his ex-girlfriend, and we didn’t want to leave our reporter and photographer in a room alone with him and potentially give him a hostage,” Hollis said.

Bowersock agreed that he would surrender to the deputies. When they arrived, he was immediately arrested and led to a patrol car, having just enough time to say on camera, “I didn’t do it,” before being taken away.

Bowersock was being held without bail at Men’s Central Jail in Los Angeles. He is expected to be arraigned today in Newhall Municipal Court on charges of first-degree murder, burglary and residential robbery.