How to report a missing person
Here’s how to take action when a person goes missing.
In what their family is calling an “unimaginable” find, law enforcement located the bodies of two men at a hidden car crash scene in California, nearly three weeks after the pair vanished.
Brothers James Fuller, 61, and Eric Fuller, 60, disappeared June 6 while driving south to the city of Santa Maria in Santa Barbara County, according to information from the family and the California Highway Patrol (CHP).
Their destination: A scheduled doctor’s appointment, SF Gate reported.
“Since that day, neither of their phones has been reachable − all calls go straight to voicemail − and they have not been seen or heard from since,” James Fuller’s daughter, Krystle Scott, wrote in an online fundraiser she created after the brothers vanished.
Scott’s family, the post reads, is from the unincorporated town of Nipomo in San Luis Obispo County, about halfway between Monterey and Santa Barbara.
Missing brothers found at car crash scene
Around 10:30 a.m. local time on June 25, a California Department of Transportation employee “conducting routine duties” found an overturned vehicle hidden in heavy brush in an embankment along State Route 166 near Old Sierra Madre Road east of Santa Maria, according to a CHP news release.
The wrecked vehicle, a blue 1998 GMC Sierra 1/2-ton pickup truck, is linked to a missing person case opened by the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office, according to the release.
“We are deeply saddened to confirm that two individuals tragically lost their lives in a traffic crash,” CHP Acting Cmdr. Sean Kelly said in the release. “Our thoughts and heartfelt condolences are with their families and loved ones.”
The family, in the fundraiser, confirmed the men’s bodies were found at the scene.
“It is with unimaginable sadness that we share the search for James and Eric Fuller has come to an end. They were found yesterday morning deep in the canyon by Caltrans,” Scott wrote. “For 21 long days, we searched tirelessly… It’s been devastating beyond words. This is not the outcome any of us prayed for.”
It was not immediately known whether foul play was suspected in the incident, but KSBY News reported that the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office said the crash appeared accidental. USA TODAY contacted the sheriff’s office and the victims’ family, but has not received a response.
Fundraiser for missing California brothers
As of July 2, people had donated more than $2,500 to the fundraiser to help with funeral costs.
The Fuller brothers grew up in Pismo Beach and had a big family, per KSBY News.
“They were very loved by their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren,” James’ daughter Scott told the TV station.
DNA testing will officially confirm whether the bodies belong to the missing siblings, San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office troopers said.
USA TODAY has reached out to the local coroner’s bureau, but has not received a response.
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.
