Remains found in California desert could be missing 30-year-old Lauren Cho, cops say
Officials found human remains while searching for a 30-year-old who has been missing since June.
Lauren Cho walked away from a home near Joshua Tree National Park in June and has been missing since, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Office said.
On Saturday, officials searching for Cho found human remains.
“During the search, unidentified human remains were located in the rugged terrain of the open desert of Yucca Valley,” the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
The remains were sent to the coroner to identify and determine a cause of death. That process could take several weeks, deputies said.
Search and rescue officials found the remains near where Cho went missing nearly four months ago. She was last seen in the Yucca Valley on June 28, according to the sheriff’s office.
Who is Lauren Cho? Search continues near Joshua Tree National Park for missing woman
Cho was a New Jersey resident whose friends called her “El,” McClatchy News reported. She moved to California eight months before she disappeared, the Hi-Desert Star reported.
She had driven across the country with her friend in a tour bus for a “different life,” Cody Orell, the last person to see Cho before she vanished, told Hi-Desert Star.
“There was a 10-minute window there and she evaporated,” Orell told the news outlet.
After Gabby Petito’s disappearance gained national attention, some people on social media pointed to Cho’s missing person case. Many have said the cases show disproportionate media coverage for missing white women compared to missing people of color.
Cho’s family, however, said the two cases are very different, according to the Palm Springs Desert Sun.
“We understand the frustration many of you have expressed about how and why certain cases receive national coverage,” her family said, according to the news outlet. “Ultimately, these two cases are NOT the same and the differences run deeper than what meets the public eye.”
Cho was last seen wearing a yellow T-shirt and jean shorts, according to the sheriff’s office. She has black hair and brown eyes. She’s 5’3”.
Climber using no equipment dies after falling at Colorado state park, officials say
Body found by visitor along Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina, officials say
Popular Instagram influencer found after going missing for a month in California
