Body Found Off Ortega Highway
An unidentified body was found by an Orange County park ranger Wednesday afternoon at the bottom of an embankment off the Ortega Highway a few miles east of San Juan Capistrano, a Sheriff’s Department spokesman said.
Lt. Russ Elsner said the fully clothed body of a white male, believed to be in his mid-30s, was spotted by the ranger when he stopped on the highway to inspect a parked truck about 4 p.m. in the San Juan Hot Springs area.
No identification was found on the body, Elsner said.
Elsner said the disabled vehicle was not related to the body. He said the dead man appeared to have suffered a blow to the head. The coroner’s office will conduct an autopsy today, he said.
“As of now, investigators are treating it as a homicide,” Elsner said.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
