The discovery of a human skull on a Los Angeles beach has raised questions as to whether it could be linked to the disappearance of an Air Force veteran eight years ago.
Michael David Vanzandt, a 44-year-old father-of-three and two-tour war veteran, was last seen on March 5 2016 in Hermosa Beach.
Vanzandt had left his home in Lancaster to go to watch a UFC fight with friends in Hermosa Beach’s Pier Plaza that night, reported local paper the Daily Breeze.
At some point in the night, he became separated from his friends. He was last seen on surveillance footage inside liquor store Roberts Liquor and then walking through a nearby parking lot.
He was never seen or heard from again.
An investigation was launched but the Hermosa Beach Police Department found no leads.
This Saturday, a skull and other bones were found washed up along Rat Beach, the Palos Verdes Estates Police Department said.
The Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office later confirmed the remains were human.
With Rat Beach being just five miles south of the site where the missing father-of-three was last seen, speculation has mounted online that the cases could be linked.
The remains have not yet been identified and police have not said whether or not they think they could belong to Vanzandt.
“There is no available information on the possible age or gender of the remains, nor is there information regarding the date or cause of death,” police said in a statement.
The Independent has contacted the Palos Verdes Estates Police Department and The Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office for comment.
