Arrests made after six bodies found in California desert
Police made arrests in connection with six bodies found in a remote area of the Mojave Desert in southern California.
The unidentified bodies were originally found on 23 January off a highway in the town of El Mirage, located in San Bernardino County.
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Office is investigating quickly to “bring justice to those folks out there”.
The causes of death are not yet known.
Key details, including the sexes and ages of those killed, are also unknown, and the sheriff’s office has not yet provided information on who was arrested.
Police responded to a call for a wellness check last Tuesday, arriving at about 20:15 local time (04:15 GMT) to a secluded area off Highway 395 near El Mirage, which is about 90 mi (144km) northeast of Los Angeles.
They discovered five bodies in an SUV and a minivan.
Aerial footage of the scene appears to show the SUV with a shattered window, bullet holes in it, and remnants of a fire, local media reported.
The area was so remote that the sheriff’s department had to call the California Highway Patrol’s aviation division for help locating the exact scene.
The sixth body was found on Wednesday morning.
“It’s going to be heart-breaking no matter what the situation is out there, as far as the circumstances surrounding it, so our investigators will continue to do their best to wrap this up quickly and get all the information possible to bring justice to those folks out there,” San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department spokesperson Mara Rodriguez said at a press conference last week.
