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In a significant development, investigators have discovered signs that human remains were once present at a San Luis Obispo County residence belonging to the mother of Kristin Smart’s murderer. This comes nearly thirty years after the 19-year-old college freshman mysteriously disappeared.
This week, authorities focused their efforts on the Arroyo Grande home of Susan Flores, the mother of Paul Flores, who has been convicted of the crime. Utilizing advanced techniques such as soil analysis and ground-penetrating radar, they searched for traces of human decomposition, according to a report by the Los Angeles Times.
San Luis Obispo County Sheriff Ian Parkinson confirmed on Friday that the results of their investigation were indeed positive.
“Based on our scientific findings, there is evidence indicating that human remains were present at one time,” Parkinson stated. “While we cannot definitively say these remains belong to Kristin, the evidence strongly suggests human remains were there.”
The sheriff emphasized that the search will persist, with investigators determined to pursue every possible lead until the case is fully resolved.
“Our search goes on, and I don’t know how long we’re going to be there,” Parkinson explained during a press conference Friday. “The warrant that we obtained means the occupants of the residence, once we serve it, have to depart and cannot return to the residence. It’s not unusual.”
Earlier this week, sheriff’s investigators and experts in human decomposition arrived at the property.
Smart, a California Polytechnic State University student from Stockton, disappeared over Memorial Day weekend in 1996 after attending an off-campus party near the college.
She was last seen walking back to her dorm with Paul Flores, then 19, after friends decided she was too intoxicated to go home by herself.
Flores — who was convicted of murdering Smart in 2022 — was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison three years ago. His father, Ruben, was acquitted of helping him.
The case remained cold for years despite repeated searches. District Attorney Dan Dow vowed Wednesday that officers are still focused on finding her remains.
“Since the jury convicted Paul Flores for the murder of Kristin Smart, the District Attorney’s Office has continued working in coordination with the Sheriff’s Office to fulfill our shared commitment to the Smart family and this community: to bring Kristin home,” he said.
Flores was a longtime suspect in the case and the last person known to have seen Smart alive when he walked her home from the booze-fueled off-campus party.
Prosecutors allege he also attempted to rape her, possibly in his dorm room, on the night of May 25, 1996, when both were freshmen at the school.