The identification process for the body discovered on Mt. Baldy on June 24, 2023, has been completed and was positively identified as 65-year-old Julian Sands of North Hollywood. The manner of death is still under investigation, pending further test results.
On Saturday, June 24, 2023, at about 10:00 am, hikers contacted the Fontana Sheriff’s Station after discovering human remains in the Mt. Baldy wilderness near where Julian Sands went missing in January 2023. Fontana Station deputies and the Sheriff’s Department’s Emergency Operations Division responded to the scene. The remains were transported to the Coroner’s Office.
On Saturday, June 17, 2023, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department continued ongoing search efforts in the Mount Baldy wilderness for missing hiker Julian Sands. Unfortunately, Mr. Sands was not located at that time. The search included over 80 Search and Rescue volunteers, deputies, and staff. Their efforts were supported by two helicopters and drone crews. Aviation resources inserted search teams into remote areas across Mount Baldy and conducted aerial search and assessments efforts. Additionally, drone crews searched areas inaccessible to ground crews.
Despite the recent warmer weather, portions of the mountain remain inaccessible due to extreme alpine conditions. Multiple areas include steep terrain and ravines, with 10-plus feet of ice and snow.
Since January, the Sheriff’s Department had conducted eight searches (ground and air) specific to Mr. Sands, with volunteer searcher hours exceeding 500. Additionally, eight unrelated search and rescue operations have been conducted in the Mount Baldy area.
Hollywood and TV actor Julian Sands went missing in ‘extremely dangerous territory’ while hiking in California’s San Gabriel Mountains.
Search and rescue teams were searching for the British star on the Baldy Bowl Trail, which climbs 3,900 feet over 4.5 miles to the highest summit in the San Gabriel Mountains, Mount San Antonio.
65-year-old Sands, a keen hiker, has been missing since mid-January. His wife, writer Evgenia Citkowitz, raised the alarm.
A phone mast ping to his iPhone provided a possible location on one of the trails leading to the summit of the 10,000ft peak, known officially as Mount San Antonio. The following day, signals sent from phone masts to his mobile showed him heading to the Mount Baldy area.
Ground and helicopter crews searched the area but found no sign of Sands. Searches were called off due to the adverse weather conditions and the threat of avalanches.
California was slammed by a series of atmospheric rivers throughout January that brought flooding and significant snowfall. At least 19 people were killed.
Julian Sands, born on January 4, 1958, was a British actor renowned for his captivating performances on stage and screen. Sands has left an indelible mark in the industry with a career spanning over four decades. He graced the silver screen in notable films such as Oscar and BAFTA winning “A Room with a View” and “The Killing Fields.” Sands leaves behind a wife and three children.
