Kristin Smart search underway at SLO County home of killer’s mother
Sheriff’s investigators served a search warrant in the Kristin Smart case Wednesday morning at the Arroyo Grande home of convicted killer Paul Flores’ mother Susan Flores.
Paul Flores was convicted in 2022 of killing Smart when she was a first-year student at Cal Poly. Smart went missing nearly 30 years ago on Memorial Day weekend of 1996. Her body has never been recovered.
In a news release, the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office said it was conducting an additional investigation into the property in the 500 block of East Branch Street in Arroyo Grande as of Wednesday morning.
The investigation was “the result of a search warrant signed by a Superior Court judge,” the release said.
“The Sheriff’s Office remains committed to bringing Kristin home to her family,” the release said, noting that further details were not expected to be released Wednesday.
Sheriff’s Office searches Arroyo Grande home
The Sheriff’s Office did not specify the home being searched Wednesday was that of Susan Flores, but the address matches that location.
And Chris Lambert — who produced a popular podcast about the Kristin Smart case titled “Your Own Backyard” — shared a photo from the scene showing Susan Flores being served documents at the door.
“Since the trial, I think the Sheriff’s Department has just been working quietly, you know, they haven’t made any public updates about it, and so just been following along and waiting to see,” Lambert told The Tribune at the scene Wednesday. “So today was a big surprise for everyone.”
Authorities have searched the home before, most notably in February 2020 ahead of Paul Flores’ arrest.
The backyard in particular has been the subject of attention, especially after scientists said they found evidence of human decomposition near Susan Flores’ yard.
The scene Wednesday was largely subdued in comparison to previous searches of the property.
No police tape wrapped around the area, and much of the search action seemed to be kept out of the public’s view.
At one point in the morning, a person drove past the home and yelled “Justice! Justice!” out the window of their vehicle.
Meanwhile, law enforcement could be seen inside and around the home, bringing in various pieces of equipment, and an officer wearing a headlamp and PPE could be seen through a window.
Lambert said he believed some of the equipment being brought in was ground scanning equipment, which could help to identify anomalies underground such as disturbed soil, clothing, bones or other items.
“Obviously, we’ve seen some movement, but they’ve been keeping it all pretty heavily under wraps,” he said. “We saw radar crew coming in and out with their ground scanning equipment.”
In all, Lambert said he was “hopeful that this is good news.”
“Obviously they wouldn’t have returned without new evidence, so waiting to see what that is,” he added.
This story was originally published May 6, 2026 at 9:59 AM with the headline "Kristin Smart search underway at SLO County home of killer’s mother."
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