Authorities in California have concluded a search of a property linked to the man convicted of murdering Kristin Smart, but did not find her remains. The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office announced on Saturday that the search of Susan Flores' home in Arroyo Grande, about 150 miles northwest of Los Angeles, was completed.
Paul Flores, Susan Flores' son, was convicted in 2022 of killing Smart, a 19-year-old college student who disappeared in 1996. Her body has never been found. The sheriff's office declined to provide further details on Saturday, but earlier in the week had stated that evidence suggested human remains were present at the property, and specialists in human decomposition and soil had taken samples.
“The Sheriff’s Office remains fully committed to finding Kristin and bringing her home to her family,” the office said in a press release. Smart vanished from California Polytechnic State University in May 1996. Prosecutors alleged she was killed during an attempted rape, and that Paul Flores, a fellow student, was the last person seen with her. She was declared legally dead in 2002.
Flores was sentenced in 2023 to 25 years to life in prison for Smart's murder. The case has drawn widespread attention, partly due to the “Your Own Backyard” podcast by Chris Lambert, which helped investigators by bringing forward additional witnesses and first reported the search of the home.
