Four years after the conviction of a man for killing a Cal Poly San Luis Obispo classmate, investigators are conducting a new search focused on finding the victim's remains.
Kristin Smart disappeared in May of 1996, after attending an off-campus party. Fellow Cal Poly student Paul Flores offered to walk her back to campus and was the last person seen with her.
San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's detectives considered him a potential suspect for decades. They finally arrested him in 2021. Flores was convicted of killing Smart in 2022, but her body has never been recovered. He is currently serving a 25-year-to-life sentence in state prison.
In the past, investigators had conducted searches of the family's property in Arroyo Grande, in an effort to see if she had been buried there.
They aren't saying what prompted the new search. A judge signed a warrant allowing detectives to search Susan Flores' property on East Branch Street in Arroyo Grande.
Department officials aren't releasing details of the search, but in a statement, they say they are committed to finding Smart.
San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow issued a statement saying that his office and the Sheriff's Office are continuing to work on their shared commitment to bring Kristin home.
