Authorities in California served a search warrant Wednesday in connection with the murder of Kristin Smart, the college student who disappeared 30 years ago and has never been found.
The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office said the warrant was served at the Arroyo Grande home of Susan Flores, whose son was convicted of Smart's murder in 2022 and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.
She could not immediately be reached for comment.
In a statement, the sheriff's office said it was conducting an additional investigation on the property after a superior court judge signed the warrant.
San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow said his office participated in the search in an effort “to bring Kristin home.”
“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,” Dow said.
Flores’ father, Ruben Flores, faced charges of accessory after the fact, and prosecutors accused him of helping his son bury Smart under the deck of his Arroyo Grande home. Years later, they alleged, her remains were dug up and moved.
A separate jury acquitted Ruben Flores of that charge in 2022.
Susan Flores has not been accused of any crimes in connection with Smart's murder.
Smart, who was 19 when she vanished on May 25, 1996, was declared legally dead in 2002.
Prosecutors said Paul Flores killed Smart during an attempted rape in his dorm room at California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo, where they were both students.
He was the last person seen with her after an off-campus party, prosecutors said.
Ruben Flores and his father were arrested in 2021. Archaeologists who searched under the deck of Ruben Flores' home that year found what prosecutors described as a soil disturbance that was roughly the size of a casket.
They also found the presence of human blood, prosecutors said, but it was too degraded to extract a DNA sample from.
