Back-to-Back Killings in Remote Mendocino: Sheriff’s Office Investigates Another Homicide
A second homicide investigation is underway in Northeastern Mendocino County after human remains were discovered Thursday, May 15 on a remote Bell Springs Road property in the Island Mountain area. The case is being treated as a homicide, according to the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office.
This follows a separate and unrelated fatal shooting reported near Covelo on the same day. Sheriff Matt Kendall acknowledged both investigations, calling them “indicative of drug trafficking organizations,” though he emphasized that they are not believed to be connected. “They’re both marijuana-related homicides,” he said, noting the locations are several hours apart and involve different circumstances.
The human remains came to the attention of law enforcement when a woman from Texas arrived at the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office in Ukiah on May 15, reporting that a man living and working on her property in the 68000 block of Bell Springs Road had possibly been killed. The last known contact with the man was around May 5, and she had received secondhand information that he might be in danger or already deceased.
Due to the remote nature of the property—accessible only through multiple locked gates—deputies accompanied the landowner to the scene. After an extensive search of the marijuana cultivation site, deputies discovered partially concealed human remains down a hill from the main residence. The remains appeared to have been deliberately hidden under debris and foliage.
The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office, assisted by their Search and Rescue unit and personnel from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office, remained overnight on the property and continued the search the following day. Sheriff Kendall told Redheaded Blackbelt that identification of the deceased will require DNA or dental records due to the advanced decomposition. The individual is believed to be a Hispanic male and may match the description of the missing property worker, but that has not yet been confirmed.
Search and rescue teams were also deployed to aid in evidence recovery across the expansive parcel. “It’s kind of a large piece of property,” said Kendall, “and it takes a lot of people to be able to…do grid searches looking for any evidence whatsoever.”
While some aspects of the investigation remain confidential, Sheriff Kendall noted that the motive may involve a marijuana-related dispute. No suspects have been publicly identified, though investigators have leads and are continuing to develop the case.
The earlier incident in the Hulls Valley Road area near Covelo also remains under active investigation after a man was found with multiple gunshot wounds. The injured man reported a carjacking. Another individual was discovered deceased in the same vicinity.
Anyone with information about the Bell Springs Road case is urged to contact the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office at 707-463-4086 (option 1) or leave an anonymous tip at 707-234-2100.
Press release from the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office:
On Thursday 05/15/2025 at approximately 12:50 P.M., a subject in Texas who owns a property in Mendocino County contacted the Sheriff’s Office to report an incident that reportedly occurred at a property she owns on Bell Springs Road.
The property owner received second-hand information earlier in the week about her property worker who was living and working at the remote property in the 68000 block of Bell Springs Road in Piercy, CA (Island Mountain Area).
The property owner learned that her worker was either in trouble or possibly murdered at the property. Nobody involved in this incident was able to reach the adult-male worker and the last known contact with the subject living on the property on Bell Springs Road was approximately 05/05/2025.
The property owner drove for approximately two days from Texas to the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office in Ukiah to report this incident. Sheriff’s Office deputies met with the property owner, who was requesting an escort to the remote property on Bell Springs Road to conduct a welfare check on her worker who she was unable to contact.
Personnel from the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office obtained further information from the property owner, who advised that the property is extremely difficult to access and behind multiple locked gates so she agreed to respond and assist deputies in accessing the parcel.
It took multiple hours to respond to the property and upon arrival, Sheriff’s Office personnel searched the over 100-acre parcel for multiple hours. The property appeared to be utilized for marijuana cultivation and deputies extensively searched the large property. As night-time hours approached, Sheriff’s Office personnel continued searching the area down the hill from the residence.
Upon further searching and investigating the area down the hill from the residence, Sheriff’s Office personnel located apparent human remains. It appeared the human remains were partially concealed with loose debris and foliage in an attempt to hide the decedent.
Due to the rapidly-approaching darkness conditions, it was decided that numerous Sheriff’s Office personnel would remain overnight at the property while additional resources were requested to assist in the recovery of the remains and conduct further searching of the large property on Friday 05/16/2025.
Investigators and deputies with the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office, Search and Rescue personnel from the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office and the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office, and law enforcement personnel from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office responded to the property during the early-morning hours of 05/16/2025 to continue searching and recover the human remains.
During recovery efforts, the decedent was determined to be an adult male but positive identification was not possible due to the advanced decomposition and condition of the remains. The remains are consistent with the general description, gender, and ethnicity of the missing property worker, but the decedent has not been positively identified at this point of the investigation.
Due to the circumstances learned during this case and the suspicious nature of the human remains recovered during this incident, this case is being investigated as a homicide and additional information will be released as it becomes available. A post-mortem examination is being scheduled for the human remains recovered during this investigation.
Anyone with information related to this investigation is requested to contact the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office Dispatch Center at 707-463-4086 (option 1). Information can also be provided anonymously by calling the non-emergency tip-line at 707-234-2100.
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Sheriff Matt Kendall acknowledged both investigations, calling them “indicative of drug trafficking organizations,”
How about asking for some Federal law enforcement involvement if these murders seem to be linked to drug trafficking organizations?
Agreed the corruption of the Mendocino county sheriffs department has gone on long enough, and as much as they don’t want federal oversight this area desperately needs a hard crack down on all of this. Including but not limited to the sheriffs department and their handling of the marijuana “industry” and the many bodies that have quite literally littered this area.
Hmm. A lady from Texas. That’s one of the the last bastions of market space available. She’s prolly posting a help wanted sign at the local supermarket about now. Wonder if she is bilingual
It’s officially summer 🌱!
“Forget it, Jake. It’s Bell Springs Road.”
Oh, that’s very good.
Weed, the flower of peace. And diversity. And multiculturalism.
If pot weren’t illegal, these things wouldn’t happen at all. So there’s that.
Seems suspicious if the lady hadn’t talked to the person from the 5th to the 17th but the body was in a high state of decomposition after just two weeks?
It was super hot last week.
Haven’t you ever watched Bones? Bodies are in advanced states of decomp after a couple of days on that TV show.
Is this not the same location that girl got mauled by dogs!?!
No. Though they are listing it as Piercy, it is on Bell Springs Road in the Island Mountain area. The dog attack was on Bear Pen Road off Highway 101. From Bear Pen to Bell Springs via 101 is 1hr and 11 min according to the map. Theoretically a person could take Red Mountain access, but I don’t know if that is even open all the way through there anymore and would take even longer.
And, lady from Texas knew. She was told what happened. She knew about the grow, and had to go to the sheriff’s. She knew person who informed her of the potential fatality. She knows more than she’s talking. Sounds fishy to me!!!
Mendocino county dropped the ball back when medical marijuana cards and permits to grow DID NOT REQUIRE GROWERS TO HAVE LIVED IN MENDOCINO COUNTY FOR AT LEAST 5 YEARS BEFORE BEING PERMITTED TO PUT A SINGLE PLANT IN THE GROUND. This failure brought chaos and criminal violence in mass. It was an invitation for organized crime funded networks to drive up the risk and the cost of rent for some of Mendocino counties most rural off the grid housing. Prior to this there were opportunities for people who were comfortable and willing to take on the challenges of living off the grid. I was able to put up a flyer or post a listing offering work for all or half of the rent and could usually find a cabin that the owner would allow us to occupy in exchange for general upkeep and maybe assistance cutting firewood and/or assisting with a modest mom and pop trimming in the fall. Suddenly those cabins became some of the most expensive rentals in the area..many renting for well over $3000 a month requiring renters to also grow and pay the owner half of a 25 plant harvest.. And the flood of LA drug dealers disguised as hippies invaded…few had intentions of staying and even fewer had an invested interest in the well being of our forests and waterways.. let alone respect for those of us who grew up living and loving this land.. Our local planners and politicians failed us and fattened up on our suffering as they orchestrated a massive environmental and social disaster.. And the idea of living off the grid now is terrifying even if it were free..
The War on Drugs only promotes illegal activity by licensing the cultivation of a plant. If cannabis had never been made illegal in the first place, for racist and competitive reasons, there would be zero incentive for violence related to “pot”.