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Prosecutors said Smart was killed during an attempted rape by then Cal Poly classmate Paul Flores. His father had been accused of helping dispose of the body, which was never found. A California man has been convicted of killing Kristin Smart, a college student who disappeared in 1996, and his father was found not guilty by a separate jury of disposing of her body. Paul Flores was found guilty Tuesday of first-degree murder and faces 25 years to life. His father, Ruben Flores, had been charged with accessory after the fact. He faced up to three years in prison. A...

Convicted killer Scott Peterson is expected to be called to the witness stand at a pre-trial hearing in California — involving the 25-year-old disappearance of co-ed Kristin Smart. Peterson knew Smart when she was a student at California Polytechnic State University before her 1996 disappearance. Peterson knew Smart when she was a student at California Polytechnic State University before her 1996 disappearance. FBI via AP, File) Peterson, who was found guilty in 2005 of killing his 27-year-old pregnant wife Laci, knew Smart when she was a student at California Polytechnic State University — and defense lawyers for the suspects in...

Chris Lambert created a podcast about the 1996 disappearance of college freshman Kristin Smart and it's taken over his life.Chris Lambert would like to get back to making music but he can’t seem to stop chasing a ghost that has haunted him for nearly 25 years. A billboard on the side of the road on California's Central Coast led him on a detour three years ago from his career as a singer-songwriter and recording engineer. He created a podcast about the 1996 disappearance of college freshman Kristin Smart and it's taken over his life. "I can't step away from it...

Two men have been arrested in connection with the disappearance 25 years ago of the California college student Kristin Smart, the authorities said on Tuesday. Paul Flores, who was the last person to see Ms. Smart on the day she disappeared in May 1996 and whom the authorities had declared in recent months to be a “prime suspect” in the case, was taken into custody at his home in San Pedro, Calif., on Tuesday, Ian Parkinson, the San Luis Obispo County sheriff, said at a news conference.

The family of Kristin Smart said there’s no imminent news expected in the case of the missing California college student, who vanished in 1996.

Contrary to recent reports, federal agents told The Chronicle on Wednesday that they did not tell the family of missing Cal Poly freshman Kristin Smart that a big break in the 23-year cold case was imminent. A spokesman for the family confirmed Wednesday that the person who advised Smart’s mother, Denise, was not an active FBI agent.

The family of Kristin Smart, the California college student who vanished 23 years ago after attending a party near her school, was reportedly told by federal agents to be prepared for news and to secure a family spokesperson. Denise Smart, the woman's mother, told the Stockton Record that she was contacted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and was told to "be ready." "This is really going to be something you don't expect. We want to give you the support you need," she said she was told. The report said the FBI was not clear on what the development was,...

Her disappearance sparked a massive manhunt, with searchers using helicopters, horses and an army of volunteers, and even ground-penetrating radar. She was never found and was presumed dead. The cold case took a new twist Tuesday when the FBI and the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Department announced they were excavating at three sites on a hillside near the dormitories. The search is centered on the giant “P” in a hillside sign that stands for Cal Poly. Officials said they picked the locations based on the activities of human decomposition dogs. ... Sheriff’s investigators along with a specialized FBI team...

<p>Kristin Smart, 19, of Stockton, disappeared May 25, 1996.</p> <p>San Luis Obispo detectives are looking at Scott Peterson in connection with the disappearance of a college student nearly seven years ago.</p> <p>Peterson, husband of Laci Peterson, went to Cal Poly at the same time as Kristin Smart, who disappeared May 25, 1996.</p>