Kristin Smart went missing 26 years ago. She was 19 years old, and a freshman in college. She was wearing what the FBI described as a grey half T-shirt, black surfing shorts, and red Puma shoes. She went to an off-campus party, and was never seen again.
Smart’s case remained open and unsolved for a quarter of a century. Then, in April 2021, authorities arrested two men they allege were responsible for Smart’s disappearance: Paul Flores, 45, who has now been charged with Smart’s murder, and his father Ruben Flores, 80, who has been charged with accessory after the fact to the crime of murder, for allegedly helping his son to conceal Smart’s body. The case is now going to trial. Paul Flores was an early suspect in the case, and was the subject of a wrongful death lawsuit brought by Smart’s family in the 1990s; he has denied any involvement, and the case was dropped after he pleaded the fifth amendment.
