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A 62-year-old man has been formally charged with the murder of his neighbors, who disappeared from their California nudist community last month.
Michael Sparks was charged with the murders of 73-year-old Stephanie Menard and Daniel Menard, 79, on Tuesday, according to San Bernardino County District Attorney Jason Anderson.
The Menards — and their shih tzu, Cuddles — were first reported missing on August 25. They were last seen at their home on Olive Dell Ranch, a self-described “family-friendly” nudist resort in southern California.
Sparks will appear in court on Wednesday and is ineligible for bail. The charges come after investigators found human remains underneath Sparks’s home on Monday. The bodies are believed to belong to the Menards, the Redlands Police Department said.
“From the beginning of this case, what we were impressed by were the community members, the friends and loved ones who learned about the Menards and came forward to indicate that things weren’t right,” Anderson said on Tuesday.
A family member had reported to police that Sparks admitted to killing two people and was threatening to take his own life, according to Redlands Police Chief Rachel Tolber.
“It was while our teams were on site that the police dispatcher received information from an individual identified as a family member indicating that [Sparks] was involved in the disappearance and had admitted to killing two people and was threatening suicide,” Tolber said.
Police first searched Sparks’s home on Thursday, breaching his house with a Tac Cat, a vehicle used by SWAT teams to navigate hazardous environments, according to the department.
Officers eventually found the 63-year-old underneath his home, and he surrendered after negotiating with officers, ABC News reports.
Officials then searched his home using cadaver dogs. The cadaver dogs initially alerted police to at least one body on the property on Thursday, but officials had to take several days to evaluate whether it was safe to enter due to “extensive damage.”
The Menards were last seen on August 24, one day before they were reported missing. Later that day, their unlocked car was found down the road from their home. The couple’s cell phones, along with Stephanie’s purse, were found in their house.
There is also still no sign of Cuddles, the police department said on Monday.
If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
