CHP Investigating Whether Wreckage Is Tied To Missing California Couple
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The Latest on the discovery of a woman's body in a wrecked car (all times local):
2:15 p.m.
Authorities confirm that a Los Angeles woman who vanished with her boyfriend during a Christmas trip has been found dead in a wrecked car on the ocean surf line at the bottom of a Central Coast cliff.
The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office reports Wednesday that the body discovered the previous night off Highway 1 is that of 20-year-old Olivia Gonzalez of North Hollywood.
The cause of her death is under investigation.
A dog's body also was found in the wreckage, which was discovered 325 feet below the highway. The area is 10 miles north of Hearst Castle.
Gonzalez and 21-year-old Brian Fernandez were last seen leaving for Big Sur on Dec. 23.
There's no word yet on what happened to Fernandez.
12:21 p.m.
Authorities have pulled the bodies of a woman and a dog from the cliff-bottom wreckage of a car off California's Highway 1, as authorities investigate whether the crash might involve a couple from Los Angeles who failed to return from a Christmas trip.
San Luis Obispo County officials say stormy weather Wednesday is hindering recovery efforts.
Sheriff's spokesman Tony Cipolla tells KEYT-TV the woman's body had been exposed to the elements for days. The coroner will try to identify the victim.
8:40 a.m.
The California Highway Patrol is investigating whether wreckage and a body spotted off the Pacific Coast Highway in San Luis Obispo County might involve a couple from Los Angeles who failed to return from a Christmas weekend trip.
CHP spokesman Officer Patrick Seebart tells the Los Angeles Times the tan vehicle wreckage was found about 325 feet below the highway about 10 miles north of Hearst Castle.
A helicopter surveying the wreckage saw the bodies of a human and a dog outside the car.
Los Angeles police have been searching for 20-year-old Olivia Gonzalez and 21-year-old Brian Fernandez, who were last seen leaving for Big Sur Dec. 23 in a tan Honda Civic.
The wreckage is in a hard-to-reach area where it is raining, and it may be Wednesday before it is hoisted up to the highway.
Copyright 2017 The Associated Press.