Paul Flores Wiki – Paul Flores Biography
Paul Flores and his father Ruben Flores were taken into custody by the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Department in relation to the disappearance of Kristin Smart on April 13, 2021. Ruben Flores was booked in with a single charge of being an accessory.
Paul Flores Age
Paul Flores is 44 years old.
Victim
Smart disappeared on May 25, 1996. She was last seen near her Cal Polytechnic San Luis Obispo dorm, police said, after walking home from a party. Smart was declared dead in 2002. Last year, investigators searched Paul Flores’ home, and said they found “items of interest” on the property.
At that time, Flores was detained at his San Pedro, California, home and released back to his home after the search, Tony Cipolla, a spokesperson for the sheriff’s office, said at the time. Officials have said Paul Flores was the last person to see Smart on May 25, 1996.
Smart disappeared after she and other students walked home from a fraternity party. She was last seen near her dorm, police said, but she never made it to her room. Friends and family never heard from her again, authorities said.
She did not have identification, money or extra clothing when she disappeared, police said. A massive search and repeated interviews with a student who walked with her that night yielded no breaks, and Smart was declared dead in 2002.
In 2016, following leads indicating her body was buried on campus, the FBI flew in three cadaver dogs from its Quantico, Virginia, training facility, and investigators dug up part of the hillside near where the school’s trademark “P” is embedded, to no avail.
Last year, the sheriff’s office said it was working the case and provided a list of its efforts since 2011, when the present administration took the helm, including: performing 18 searches at nine locations; submitting 37 pieces of evidence for DNA testing; recovering “140 new items of evidence”; and conducting 91 interviews.
Arrested – Charges
San Luis Obispo County Sheriff Ian Parkinson held a press conference at Cal Poly on Tuesday afternoon April 13th to officially announce the arrest of Paul Flores for the murder of Kristin Smart. Cal Poly was the last place the 19-year-old freshman was seen alive nearly 25 years ago.
Sheriff Parkinson laid out the recent timeline leading to Flores’s arrest. He explained that in late 2016, investigators got ahold of evidence that identified Flores as the prime suspect in Kristin’s disappearance. Three years later, they interviewed at least one new witness that had not been previously interviewed. Parkinson attributed the “Your Own Backyard” podcast for bringing that new information to light.
With that new evidence, Parkinson said detectives were able to secure a court order to intercept Flores’s electronic communications.
After that, search warrants served at Flores’s home in San Pedro, his parents’ homes in Arroyo Grande, and his sister’s home reportedly yielded evidence for a second search in San Pedro where Sheriff Parkinson says investigators collected evidence related to the murder of Kristin Smart.
A second search at Paul’s father’s home in March 2021 also reportedly yielded evidence that resulted in a judge issuing two more search warrants and two arrest warrants – one for Paul and one for his father, Ruben.
Ruben Flores was arrested
Ruben Flores was arrested Tuesday morning on suspicion of being an accessory to the crime. A search at his home on White Court in Arroyo Grande continued Tuesday afternoon and Parkinson said it could continue into the next day. Investigators also searched Paul’s house again.
Sheriff Parkinson said the search warrants are sealed so he can not discuss what evidence was found; however, he said investigators have not yet recovered Kristin’s remains. He spoke to the Smart family on Tuesday, saying, “I think they’re feeling a bit of relief, but as you can imagine, until we return Kristin to them, this is not over.”
The Sheriff said he believes they are closer to finding Kristin and investigators will continue to focus on locating her remains.
The case has been turned over to the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office. Paul Flores is expected in court for arraignment on Thursday, April 15th. He is being held without bail. Ruben Flores is being held with bail set at $250,000.