The decades-long disappearance of Kristin Smart took another heartbreaking turn this weekend. California investigators said they did not find any remains of the 19-year-old student on a property where earlier soil testing showed the presence of human remains. “The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office did not recover Kristin Smart,” the office said in a statement Saturday.
📋 Key facts from the Kristin Smart disappearance case
- Latest search (Wednesday–weekend): Property owned by Paul Flores’s mother in Arroyo Grande, Calif.
- Technology used: Ground penetrating radar and advanced soil testing – early results suggested human remains had been there.
- Outcome: “We did not recover Kristin Smart,” sheriff’s office said Saturday. Evidence will be evaluated.
- Kristin Smart: 19, Cal Poly student, vanished after off‑campus party on May 25, 1996 (Memorial Day weekend).
- Paul Flores: Arrested 2021, convicted of murder 2022, sentenced 2023 to 25 years to life. Maintains innocence, appealing.
- Ruben Flores: Father arrested for helping hide body – acquitted.
- Sheriff Ian Parkinson: “The case was not over. Kristin is still missing.” Will continue search even if this property fails.
- Flores family: Has not been cooperative in the search.
- History: Smart family sued Flores in 1997 (wrongful death); he cited Fifth Amendment. Searches involved helicopters, horseback, excavators.
- Momentum: 2020 searches of 4 locations tied to Flores led to 2021 arrest. Prosecutors said he killed her during attempted rape.
Detectives will look at any evidence we have recovered to help with the investigation. Kristin Smart disappeared after an off-campus party the weekend of Memorial Day in 1996 – nearly 30 years ago. Paul Flores, a fellow student at the time, was arrested in 2021 and convicted of her murder the next year. Even after that conviction, officials vowed they would find her body.
Why latest search in Kristin Smart disappearance gave hope then disappointment
Timeline of the Kristin Smart disappearance and search
May 25, 1996: Kristin Smart vanishes after off‑campus party. Paul Flores says he walked her back to campus.
1997: Smart family files wrongful‑death lawsuit; Flores refuses to testify (Fifth Amendment).
2011: Ian Parkinson elected sheriff, vows new efforts.
2020: Four locations tied to Flores searched, including his L.A. home.
April 2021: Paul Flores arrested and charged with murder. Father Ruben Flores also arrested (later acquitted).
October 2022: Paul Flores convicted of murder (prosecutors said he killed her during attempted rape).
2023: Flores sentenced to 25 years to life; appeals.
Wednesday–weekend (current): New search of Flores mother’s Arroyo Grande property using advanced tech. No remains found.
Sheriff Ian Parkinson, elected in 2011, led the renewed efforts, promising the Smart family he would pursue the case aggressively. On Wednesday, his office began searching a property in Arroyo Grande owned by Paul Flores’s mother, just south of San Luis Obispo. The place had been searched a few times before. But a new clue and better ground-penetrating radar and soil-testing technology lured investigators back in.
Preliminary testing of the soil outside the home was encouraging. “The results indicated that human remains had been there or could still be there,” Parkinson said. Still, the weekend search ended without any sign of Kristin Smart. But Parkinson vowed: “We will not rest until we find Ms. Smart’s remains or determine she was not there.”
What’s next in Kristin Smart disappearance – sheriff vows to keep going
Sheriff Parkinson called a news conference Friday, before the search was even completed. “If it doesn’t give us the results we want, we’ve done a great job of changing direction and moving onto something else and chasing that till the end,” he said. “The Flores family has not been cooperative in the search for Kristin Smart,” Parkinson said. It has haunted California for decades.
Extensive searches of the Cal Poly campus and surrounding area began the first few years with helicopters, horseback parties and excavators. Billboards and missing posters promised rewards. Paul Flores, 49, denies the charges and is appealing his conviction. Ruben Flores’s father was acquitted of helping to hide the body.
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But Sheriff Parkinson has a purpose in mind. “The case was not over,” he said after Flores was found guilty. “It’s the fact that Kristin is still missing.” Now detectives will examine any evidence found in the latest dig. And they will continue to search.
What’s next after this search in the Kristin Smart disappearance?
Detectives will analyze any physical evidence collected from the Arroyo Grande property. The sheriff’s office will either follow new leads or use advanced technology on other locations. Paul Flores’s appeal continues. The Smart family waits.
