Church volunteer George Smart suddenly disappeared in early
September, raising alarm among friends and fellow worshipers at the Ukiah
Methodist Church.
On Wednesday, their worry turned to grief after learning the Mendocino
County Sheriff’s Department has positively identified a skull found Halloween
night at the confluence of Outlet Creek and the Eel River as that of Smart,
63.
Sheriff’s investigators said they believe animals had dragged the skull
from a nearby undiscovered single-car accident scene about seven miles east on
Highway 162, the route leading to Covelo and the Round Valley. Smart often had
led Methodist services in Covelo.
Investigators said partial human remains were found inside a van, later
identified as belonging to Smart.
Deputie said foul play is not suspected. The van driven by Smart apparently
veered off of Highway 162, and plunged 100 feet down a steep, heavily wooded
embankment.
Smart, a retired Bureau of Land Management employee, suffered from diabetes
and a health condition requiring medication, according to friends.
He was reported missing by church members after they discovered his pet
Siamese cat starving in his Ukiah mobile home. Mail at his residence had been
piling up since Aug. 7, a day when he is believed to have gone to Covelo to
lead church services.
