San Diego

Police searched unsuccessfully in a canyon area of Scripps Ranch Wednesday for the personal property of a man whose body was discovered Monday.

Homicide detectives said they were searching for car keys, wallet and jewelry belonging to Henry L. Foster Sr., a Southeast San Diego resident last seen alive on Dec. 10.

The site where the 55-year-old victim was found is a steep ravine with loose gravel, and police said it was possible that Foster died from a fall.

Deputy Coroner Penne Hammerstead said that, because the degree of decomposition of the body, it will be several weeks before a cause of death can be pinpointed. San Diego Police Lt. Phil Jarvis added, “We may never find out what killed Mr. Foster.”

Foster, a retired construction worker, was last seen alive while bowling at Leisure Lanes in Lemon Grove. Police said he returned home, changed clothes and apparently drove his 1977 green Toyota Celica to a trolley stop at Martin Luther King Way and Euclid Avenue, where his car was discovered.

Francine Williams, Foster’s daughter, said her family believes that her father was abducted, robbed and then killed. They plan to pay for an independent autopsy and a private investigation.

The family has set up a Henry L. Foster Sr. Investigation Fund, and asked that, instead of flowers, people send contributions for that fund to the Rev. George Gunter of Messiah Lutheran Church, 310 S. 31st St., San Diego, 92113.

Memorial services for Foster are scheduled for 6 p.m. Sunday at Trinity Lutheran Church, 7210 Lisbon St.