Coroner Calls Chiropractor’s Death Suicide

A Capistrano Beach chiropractor missing since December apparently committed suicide by plunging his car off Ortega Highway, coroner’s officials concluded Monday.

An autopsy completed Monday identified the victim as Steven Sales, 59, according to Deputy Coroner Pat Lorey.

Officials also used Sales’ dental and medical records for positive identification, Lorey added.

A Sheriff’s Department helicopter spotted Sales’ red 1989 Corvette on Sunday morning on the side of a ravine along Ortega Highway in an unincorporated area east of San Juan Capistrano.

“We’re classifying his death as that of a suicide . . . just because of information we received from interviewing friends and relatives,” Lorey said.

In the weeks leading up to his Dec. 2 disappearance, Sales had told his ex-wife and office manager that he was depressed about his ailing health and failing business.

His former wife, Rita Sales, 45, of San Juan Capistrano, said after Sales’ disappearance that she feared foul play. She could not be reached Monday.

Lorey said the autopsy concluded that Sales died of severe chest injuries.

Also, based upon the decomposition of the body, coroner’s officials believe that the chiropractor died about the time he was reported missing, Lorey said.