Human remains found in California mountain area where actor Julian Sands went missing

Hikers on Saturday discovered human remains on Southern California’s Mount Baldy, officials said, the same mountain area where British actor Julian Sands went missing more than five months ago.

The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department reported that the remains were reported by hikers at about 10 a.m.

Deputies responded and transported the victim’s remains to the county coroner’s office for identification, the sheriff’s department disclosed.

The 65-year-old Sands was reported missing on the night of Jan. 13 on Mt. Baldy, a popular hiking area located in the San Gabriel Mountains, about 50 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles. 

Sheriff’s officials announced last week that they resumed the search for Sands on June 17, with over 80 search and rescue volunteers, deputies and staff taking part. However, he was not located at the time.

“Despite the recent warmer weather, portions of the mountain remain inaccessible due to extreme alpine conditions,” the sheriff’s department said in a statement last week. “Multiple areas include steep terrain and ravines, which still have 10 plus feet of ice and snow.”

This past winter, California was hit by a series of historic storms, driven by atmospheric rivers, which caused flooding and mudslides statewide and also created dangerous conditions in wilderness areas.

Two days after Sands went missing, a mother of four died after sliding more than 500 feet down Mt. Baldy. Later that same month, a 75-year-old man was found and rescued after going missing on Mt. Baldy for two days.  

Sands has dozens of film and television credits over a five-decade career. They include “A Room with a View,” “Leaving Las Vegas,” “The Killing Fields,” “Oceans Thirteen” and “24.”