Silver Alert CA - Stephanie Menard, 73, Daniel Menard, 79, & Cuddles, white Shih Tzu, Olive Dell Ranch nudist resort, unlocked car found, Redlands, 24 Aug 2024

[Leilei]

Neighbor at nudist resort arrested on suspicion of murder in disappearance of Redlands couple

A 62-year-old neighbor of a missing Redlands couple was arrested Thursday at a San Bernardino County nudist resort on suspicion of murder in connection with their disappearance over the weekend.

www.nbclosangeles.com

""A cadaver dog "alerted" on at least one body at the property, [public information officer] Baker said at a midday news conference."

Photo of suspect Michael Sparks:
View attachment 528006

Looks like they have him in a "turtle" vest. Suicide risk? IMO

 

[GoBuckeyes]

I wonder if the house was booby-trapped in addition to the hoarding & that made it collapse so quickly.

I think it tore apart and collapsed only from the battering ram. moo No offense to the operator, but my 3 year-old nephew drives his Power Wheels better.

 

[Inthedetails]

at about 2:15 mark, reporter says they have found Cuddles. But doesn't say anything other than that.

 

[Eleven_11]

I can see that issue being contentious and it's a valid reason for complaint. But, enough to be murdered? Wow, I don't know. The perp has essentially the same set up as the victims in terms of housing type, from what it looks like. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Could there have been other conflicts?

jmo

Remains to be seen whether there are other conflicts, but I really think it will all come down to this ongoing conflict. Can't fathom how murder was the solution though.

 

[kimmo]

at about 2:15 mark, reporter says they have found Cuddles. But doesn't say anything other than that.

Interesting. I just posted the second presser and I didn't hear him say that Cuddles was found. He does say that a cadaver dog was sent in.

 

[Megnut]

Site still not stable enough for personnel to go in.
Cadaver dog hit on a body in the area where the suspect was taken into custody.
No further info on the perp.
Remote search of home, perp located under home. He surrendered after negotiation.

Additionally, when asked if the suspect is cooperating, LE said, "no, he's asked for a lawyer."

 

[GoBuckeyes]

Michael Sparks was UNDER THE HOME when they located him last night.

And I read also that today a cadaver dog alerted to an area under the home and/or debris. So, so sad!

 

[sasha17]

Interesting. I just posted the second presser and I didn't hear him say that Cuddles was found. He does say that a cadaver dog was sent in.

I wonder if the reporter misspoke.

Would a cadaver dog alert on a deceased dog or do they only alert on deceased people?

 

[TravelingBug]

For anyone who wants just a quick minute ish summary from on scene about the cadaver dogs hitting from a KFI reporter's twitter from an ABC affiliate:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1829587650220867639

 

[kimmo]

During the second presser today a reporter asks about a neighbor that disappeared 2 years ago and was never located. She asked if it was part of this investigation. He said he didn't have any information on that.
It did intrigue me. Anyone know anything about that missing person?

 

[STLBlues]

The video in post #2 showed their car parked in what appears to be a gravel lot.


I wonder if that was a picture of where the car was found and if this is the location? Yellow arrow the victims' home, green arrow perp's home, red arrow possible location of the car?

 

[K9Enzo]

I wonder if the reporter misspoke.

Would a cadaver dog alert on a deceased dog or do they only alert on deceased people?

They would smell the deceased dog (of course) but trained final responses are for human remains. imo

 

[GoBuckeyes]

Not sure the forensic team was already there? Maybe they are waiting for the coroner not to compromise evidence ? Or the suspect maybe told them that they are underneath and LE needs ither tools to reach the place and not compromise the crime scene

This is just a guess. I think Sparks went to hide in the same space he hid the bodies. When he came out, the smell of decomp would have been evident. moo

 

[truthfinder2019]

A dog trained to find cadavers indicated the presence of at least one body somewhere under the house Friday morning, but officers were waiting to enter until a structural assessment determined whether the home was safe, Baker said at a news conference.

“We’re not going to send people in if there’s a danger of the structure collapsing on them,” Baker said, noting that the assessment might take hours to complete.

Neighbor held in disappearance of couple from California nudist resort. Both believed to be dead

A neighbor has been arrested in connection with the disappearance of a couple from their home at a Southern California nudist resort. The Redlands Police Department says 62-year-old Michael Royce

gazette.com

 

[kimmo]

Also during the second presser, he says the cadaver dog alerted in the area where the suspect was taken into custody last night.

 

[truthfinder2019]

So he was barricated under his house with 2 dead people ?!
How awful gosh

 

[Knox]

So, from what I read last night in court documents....one of the lawsuits is regarding whether or not it is classified as a mobile home park or a recreational vehicle park which apparently have different rules & regulations. The complaint essentially said that the owners were charging residents additional fees and/or evicting them and I believe, that is where the harassment claims/restraining orders are stemming from. It is case #CIVSB2417577 if you want to look it up (San Bernardino Open Access)

Ahhh, that makes sense. In California, mobile home parks have rent control protections. I don’t believe RV Parks do as staying at them is a choice which can be made.

 

[Snoopster]

The video in post #2 showed their car parked in what appears to be a gravel lot.
View attachment 528016

I wonder if that was a picture of where the car was found and if this is the location? Yellow arrow the victims' home, green arrow perp's home, red arrow possible location of the car?
View attachment 528019

No, I don't believe that is where their car was originally found. It was found about half a mile down the road. After police were done looking at the car a resident moved the car (since it was on private property) and back to it's normal parking spot in Dell Ranch. It was discussed earlier in the thread.

 

[sasha17]

During the second presser today a reporter asks about a neighbor that disappeared 2 years ago and was never located. She asked if it was part of this investigation. He said he didn't have any information on that.
It did intrigue me. Anyone know anything about that missing person?

I don't know if this is the case the reporter was referring to but there is a woman who has been missing from the same town (Carson) since 2020: Missing Person / NamUs #MP74779

CA - CA - Lani Uribes, 58, rang neighbor's doorbell then left, car found abandoned, Colton, 2 Aug 2020

Lani Stella Uribes JEWELRY: Ring DENTAL X-RAYS AVAILABLE: No Lani was last seen on August 2, 2020, in Colton. Her vehicle was located off the Highway I-15 exit, Cleghorn Ridge OHV Road. Contact AGENCY: San Bernardino Sheriff's Office-Central Station PHONE NUMBER: (909) 387-3690 CASE...

www.websleuths.com

 

[TravelingBug]

One news article videos mentioned that one of the neighbours, after police inspection, brought it back in front of Dan s and Steph home, as it had been abandoned on a private property and it would have been removed.
I’ll find the video.
So the car was open with the keys inside and was functioning

Bumping this earlier post for you @STLBlues

The location being shown isn't where it was originally found. It had been moved off the private property back into the community.