Human remains found after neighbor arrested for murder of couple missing from nudist ranch
Days after a couple went missing from a house at a nudist community in California, police said they believe the couple is dead and they will continue to search under the suspect's house for evidence. Human remains were discovered in the search but it hasn't been verified whether the remains belong to the couple, police said.
The Redlands Police Department arrested Michael Sparks, 62, Thursday night in connection with the disappearance of Dan Menard, 79, and Stephanie Menard, 73, from the Olive Dell Ranch.
Sparks was arrested for murder and booked at West Valley Detention Center.
Police launched a search for the couple's bodies after the suspect was taken into custody and they said they had reason to believe the remains were on the suspect's property.
A cadaver dog was deployed to the property, guiding investigators to the area where the suspect was taken into custody, indicating there was at least one body there, according to RPD.
Police entered the suspect's house on Friday, and a specialized team was able to enter the area under the home where murder suspect Michael Sparks was found Thursday, according to the Redland Police Department.
Police found a concrete space under the house about 5 feet deep which goes to the back of the property, which is a mobile home, Carl Baker, the pubic information officer for RPD, said.
RPD, fire personnel, forensics personnel and member of the San Bernardino County Coroner's Office began removing bags of evidence from the space.
Coroner's officials confirmed the evidence included human remains, according to RPD. The remains will be examined by the coroner's office, RPD said.
After investigators began to remove evidence, the space showed signs of potential collapse so all personnel were removed, RPD said.
Heavy equipment is being brought in Saturday morning to remove debris and ensure the safety of the area before evidence retrieval continues, RPD said.
While attempting to arrest the suspect, police used armored vehicles to take apart the front of the house. Significant damage was dealt to the suspect's home when police breached it, according to police.
Before using equipment, police attempted to contact the suspect "for a great deal of time" and broke a window and entered with a drone, but they were not able to get it around in the house, Baker said.
"We had reason to believe the suspect was barricaded and armed and we wanted to protect the safety of our officers, that's why the front of the house was removed," Baker told reporters Friday.
"In fact, the suspect was barricaded and he was armed with a rifle," Baker said.
