Sheriff’s investigators searching Arroyo Grande home in connection with disappearance of Kristin Smart
ARROYO GRANDE, Calif. (KEYT) – Deputies served a search warrant at a home in the 500 block of East Branch Street Wednesday in connection with the 1996 disappearance of Kristin Smart.
According to the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office, the search is related to the Kristin Smart case and was authorized by a Superior Court Judge.
Your News Channel reporter Dave Alley is on the scene as law enforcement search the home of the mother of the man convicted for Smart's death, Paul Flores, as well as a neighboring home.
Chris Lambert of the Your Own Backyard podcast, which covered the disappearance and subsequent trial connected to Smart's disappearance, shared with Your News Channel that Flores' mother was the one who received the search warrant Wednesday morning.
The countywide law enforcement agency stated it would not be providing any additional details at this point in its investigation, but did share the images used in this article.
In October of 2022, Paul Flores, a fellow student at Cal Poly at the time of Smart's disappearance and the last person seen with her, was convicted of her murder despite her body never being recovered.
Prosecutors accused Paul Flores of killing Smart during an attempted rape in his Cal Poly dorm room and his father Ruben Flores was alleged to have helped conceal Smart's body.
The father and son were both arrested in April of 2021 as part of the decades-long investigation.
Flores' father's home in Arroyo Grande was part of the search for Kristin Smart, even years after her disappearance and a contributing factor as to why Paul's father Ruben was charged as an accessory in Smart's murder.
Ruben Flores was found not guilty during the same trial that found his son guilty of Smart's death and Susan Flores invoked her Fifth Amendment right against self incrimination instead of testifying.
"The Sheriff's Office remains committed to bringing Kristin home to her family," stated a press release Wednesday about the investigation.
In October of last year, Flores' second appeal of his conviction was denied and the California Supreme Court declined his request for a review of his case and appeals in January of this year.
According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Paul Flores remains incarcerated at California State Prison Corcoran and is next eligible for parole in June of 2037.
"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," shared District Attorney Dan Dow Wednesday. "The District Attorney's Bureau of Investigation is assisting with today's search, and Assistant District Attorney Eric Dobroth supported the Sheriff's Office in advance of their obtaining judicial authorization for this warrant. While those responsible for Kristin's death—and those with knowledge of her whereabouts—could provide answers at any time, we remain firmly committed to using every lawful tool available to locate Kristin’s remains and to support her family until she is brought home."
The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office shared that its investigations staff will return to the Susan Flores' Arroyo Grande home Thursday to continue a search of the property.
Your News Channel is on the scene and will add additional information to this article as it is received.
