MOSCOW, November 6 (RIA Novosti) — The body of missing Fox movie executive Gavin Smith has been found, more than two years after his disappearance, according to the L.A. Times.
The paper reports the Los Angeles County coroner’s office as saying that they it may not be possible to determine Smith’s cause of death: “It could be months, if ever, worst-case scenario,” said Lieutenant David Smith.
KTLA 5 News, a Los Angeles TV station, reported today that the remains were found by hikers in a rural area of California on October 26, and had been subsequently identified as the 57-year-old, who went missing on May 1, 2012.
He was last seen leaving a friend’s home in Oak Park, California, driving his black Mercedes-Benz. On February 21, 2013 his car was found inside a Simi Valley storage facility that belonged to John Creech, with whose wife he was alleged to be having an affair. According to the Daily Mail, John Creech is currently in prison on unrelated drug charges. The Mail also reports that Gavin Smith and Chandrika Creech met in drug rehab.
After finding the car, Los Angeles police decided Smith had been the victim of a homicide, telling KTLA: “Based upon the condition of the vehicle and based upon information we have gathered from witnesses who are cooperating, we believe that this case is a homicide case.” In May 2013 a death certificate was issued for Smith, dated May 2, 2012, the day he disappeared.
The L.A. Times reported John Creech was identified as a "person of interest" in the investigation, but was not charged in connection with the disappearance. In January 2013 KTLA said Creech’s home was searched by detectives, but no arrests were made.
The Daily Mail interviewed Smith’s wife Lisa last year, who said she was devastated by his disappearance, and believed that he had been murdered. “I am terrified that whoever did it is going to come after me and our boys,” she told the paper.
Gavin Smith worked for 20th Century Fox as a distribution executive for 18 years, before which he worked as an actor. In 1975 he was part of the UCLA basketball team which won the national championship. He was married with three sons.
