HEMET: Officials investigating after deceased body found inside parked car
HEMET — Officials are investigating the death of a person whose lifeless body was found inside a parked sedan, Tuesday morning, Feb. 13.
Hemet PD officials are conducting a death investigation after Riverside County Sheriff’s deputies located a deceased body inside a parked car. Robert Carter/Public Safety Incidents
Deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Hemet Station happened upon the vehicle, described as a grey, four-door, Mazda, about 9:30 a.m.
Upon closer inspection, authorities found the body of a person inside the vehicle, which was parked on Lake Street and Seal Rock Court, south of Ramona Expressway/Mountain Avenue, in Hemet.
Deputies at the scene determined the person inside the vehicle was deceased and requested City of Hemet Police, who responded to the scene with officers, detectives and other officials to conduct a death investigation.
Officials who searched the vehicle located what appeared to be a glass smoking pipe and other narcotics-related paraphernalia, which were collected as evidence.
Riverside County Sheriff-Coroner’s officials responded to the scene and recovered the body, which has not yet been identified publicly pending further investigation and notification of the victim’s family.
Witnesses who live in the area later told investigators and others that they had seen the vehicle parked at the location since about 9 p.m. the prior night. One witness reportedly saw an unidentified man sitting inside the vehicle while using a cell phone, while others stated that they had seen the vehicle’s headlights and emergency flashers on until around 4 a.m. this morning.
The Mazda was eventually towed from the scene and seized as evidence in the death investigation, which is active and ongoing.
Lake street remained closed for several hours while officers, deputies and others conducted an initial death investigation.
The cause of death is still under investigation and no official information has been released by Hemet PD yet.
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Trevor Montgomery, who recently moved from Riverside County to Shasta County, runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for Riverside County based newspapers Valley News, The Valley Chronicle and Anza Valley Outlook as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident.
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 27 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 14 grandchildren.