A Northern California man missing since attending the Reggae on the River festival was found dead Tuesday at the bottom of a cliff not far from where his vehicle had crashed his car, authorities said.
Jose “Johnny” Mandujano, 40, of Willits, was found about 35 feet below Highway 101 near Leggett, according to the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office. Cal Fire personnel reached him after deputies received a report that he had been located near the crash site.
The sheriff’s office said an autopsy was being scheduled and that a coroner’s investigation was underway.
Mandujano had told family members he planned to attend last weekend’s Reggae on the River festival at County Line Ranch in Piercy and return home afterward, according to the Willits Police Department.
When he did not come back, family members tracked his cell phone to a Laytonville tow yard, police said. His silver 2007 Toyota Yaris had been towed after a traffic wreck near the Empire rest area, close to mile marker 83.5 on Highway 101. Mandujano was not with the vehicle when it was towed.
Willits police investigators went to the tow yard and crash location on Monday before requesting assistance from the sheriff’s office search and rescue team.
Because of the dangers of combing the highway after dark, the search was scheduled for Tuesday morning. While the search team was traveling to the area, deputies received word that Mandujano had been found.
Cal Fire personnel descended the embankment and determined that Mandujano was dead, the sheriff’s office said.
A family GoFundMe campaign page identifies Mandujano’s surviving family as his wife, Jen, and describes him as the primary provider to his wife, two daughters and a son. The campaign says donations will help cover funeral expenses and living costs.
The death was the second reported fatality connected to the festival in two years.
In August 2025, authorities identified a body recovered from the South Fork Eel River as 66-year-old Robert Samuel James of Los Angeles.
According to the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office, James, whose body was located about 1.4 miles upstream from the grounds, was not wearing a festival wristband at the time of recovery. He had reportedly traveled to the event with a friend and may have been affiliated with a vendor.
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This article originally published at Missing California man found dead below Highway 101 crash site after reggae festival.