\n Still, key questions have stood in the way of the Smart family\u2019s pursuit of some semblance of closure and their hope to \u201cfinally lay her to rest<\/a> in the presence of those who love her.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n The new search at the home of Susan Flores underscored a renewed commitment to finding answers in the Smart case.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cUntil we have Kristin, everything is still wide-open,\u201d San Luis Obispo County Sheriff Ian Parkinson told reporters Friday.\n <\/p>\n \n Susan Flores\u2019 Arroyo Grande home has been searched multiple times during the 30-year investigation. But Parkinson said there have since been advances in the soil science and the ground-penetrating radar investigators used to scour the property.\n <\/p>\n \n CNN reached out to attorneys who previously represented the Flores family and to Susan Flores but did not hear back.\n <\/p>\n \n Last week, investigators descended on Flores\u2019 mother\u2019s home, combing through the packed garage<\/a> and examining the deck.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cKristin has been moved, and we don\u2019t know how many times she\u2019s been moved and to where she\u2019s moved, and so just because somebody\u2019s house was searched doesn\u2019t mean that we\u2019re not going back there, because she could have been moved back there thinking that it\u2019s a safe place,\u201d the sheriff told reporters before later announcing Saturday the search had concluded without recovering Smart.\n <\/p>\n \n Authorities had a search warrant permitting them to return to the home based on \u201cinvestigative leads and evidence,\u201d the sheriff previously said, as well as \u201cinformation that was derived from what we have to deem as a witness.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n Parkinson would not disclose what new information enabled investigators to get the latest warrant.\n <\/p>\n \n A Sheriff\u2019s Office spokesperson told CNN the warrant permitting authorities to enter and search the property remains sealed, meaning the underlying evidence presented to the judge is not yet public.\n <\/p>\n \n Smart\u2019s remains were not recovered in the latest search in Arroyo Grande, the sheriff\u2019s office said Saturday while announcing the search had been concluded<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n \n The agency did not elaborate on the search at the home, only saying any evidence recovered would be sent for evaluation to \u201caid in the investigation.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cThe Sheriff\u2019s Office remains fully committed to finding Kristin and bringing her home to her family,\u201d the sheriff\u2019s office said Saturday.\n <\/p>\n \n The sheriff had previously said evidence indicated human remains \u201cwere there at one time or still there,\u201d but could not say whether they were Smart\u2019s.\n <\/p>\n \n The home\u2019s yard was described by the sheriff as \u201ca very small area back there to search, but also, as you can see, it\u2019s quite crowded with stuff,\u201d which complicated their efforts.\n <\/p>\n What led to signs of human remains at the home?<\/p>\n \n Advances in soil science were key to the latest search after new soil testing returned some indications of human remains, Parkinson said.\n <\/p>\n \n Investigators also used ground-penetrating radar \u2013 technology that uses sound waves to map structures below the ground \u2013 to scour the property, according to Parkinson.\n <\/p>\n \n Soil samples are collected and analyzed for human DNA at a local lab, Parkinson said.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cWe\u2019re also conducting soil tests and that\u2019s kind of the scientific part. I\u2019m not going to go into the details other than to just say \u2026 it\u2019s about the compounds in the soil that are related to a human decomposing body,\u201d the sheriff said previously.\n <\/p>\n \n Tim Nelligan, an expert in soil vapor testing, told The Associated Press<\/a> last week he was on the premises, gathering samples in Susan Flores\u2019 yard as well as a neighbor\u2019s yard.\n <\/p>\n \n Nelligan declined to discuss the investigation but said his \u201cteam has, in general, \u2018come up with a methodology to assess soil vapor\u2019 and its relation to \u2018human cadaver decomposition.\u2019\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n Parkinson had described the search as a methodical, step-by-step process.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cThey\u2019ve been analyzing every night since we\u2019ve been there,\u201d he added. \u201cThen that data goes to the person that\u2019s going to interpret it \u2026 and see if that data matches the thresholds. So, it\u2019s a long process.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cWe are not leaving that house until we are sure that we have checked everything,\u201d Parkinson said before the search concluded Saturday without recovering Smart.\n <\/p>\n \n Smart\u2019s family has said they feel as if Paul Flores continues \u201cto stand in the way of our daughter being returned to us.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n In an interview with CNN three years after their daughter went missing, Stan and Denise Smart said they hoped to one day be able to lay their daughter to rest.\n <\/p>\n \n Their message for Paul Flores: \u201cWe will have a resolution and he will wish that he\u2019d come forward much sooner,\u201d Denise Smart said.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cWe believe he\u2019s definitely involved,\u201d her husband added. \u201cThe best outcome would be that we\u2019d be able to find our daughter\u2019s remains and we\u2019d be able to have some justice.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n In a statement<\/a> posted on their website, Smart\u2019s family said: \u201cFor thirty years, we have lived with a pain no family should have to endure, as heartache, frustration, and setbacks have woven themselves into our everyday lives.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n For decades, Flores remained a person of interest in Smart\u2019s disappearance. Smart was last seen with Flores, then a 19-year-old freshman who walked home from a party with her.\n <\/p>\n \n Flores was 43 years old when the sheriff\u2019s office obtained a warrant to monitor his cellphone and messages<\/a>. In February 2020, detectives served a search warrant<\/a> at his home, as well as the homes of his sister, mother and father, according to the sheriff\u2019s office.<\/a>\n <\/p>\n \n They also recovered physical evidence from Flores\u2019 home in April that year, the office said.\n <\/p>\n \n Then a year later, in March 2021, detectives served a warrant<\/a> at the Arroyo Grande home of Flores\u2019 father, Ruben. Detectives used ground-penetrating radar and dug the property using hand tools, the sheriff\u2019s office told CNN<\/a> at the time.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cAdditional evidence related to the murder of Kristin Smart is discovered at the site,\u201d the sheriff\u2019s office said in a statement.<\/a>\n <\/p>\n \n Prosecutors would later allege<\/a> Ruben helped his son hide Smart\u2019s body under the family\u2019s deck before relocating her remains.\n <\/p>\n \n On April 13, 2021 \u2013 almost exactly 25 years since Kristin Smart disappeared \u2013 authorities arrested<\/a> Paul Flores and charged him with her murder.\n <\/p>\n \n Ruben Flores was also arrested and charged with allegedly aiding Flores in hiding Smart\u2019s body.\n <\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/689482060-1412030470921908.JPG\")
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