The LA County Sheriff's Dept. sent out a release this afternoon that an apparent suicide victim was found in Chantry Flats this morning about 11 AM.
Identification of the remains has not yet been made, pending identification by the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office, but initial reports say that it is likely Kevin Pochter (pictured), who was being sought this weekend for the murder of Dean Albert of Arcadia last Thursday.
Authorities were seeking Pochter after Albert's body was found in Chantry Flats and Albert's 1993 silver BMW was missing last Thursday.
Albert's car was found abandoned on Mt. Wilson area. Yesterday (Sunday) afternoon, deputies were searching the Henninger Flats area above Eaton Canyon after Pochter was reportedly sighted by a hiker in the area.
According to the sheriff's department release:
At about 8:30AM Monday morning, May 2, a hiker saw a male in the Chantry Flats area who he thought might be sleeping. However, he remembered reading in the Pasadena Star News newspaper about the search for a murderer in that area. He also remembered that the article included the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department cautioning the public that the suspect was armed and dangerous, and to not contact anyone they considered suspicious. Instead, they were asked to alert authorities.
The hiker walked to the closest ranger station and reported his suspicions. Rangers contacted the sheriff’s command post, which dispatched deputies to investigate.
Sheriff’s Mounted Enforcement Detail deputies went to the described area and located the deceased male. A handgun was found near the body. Sheriff’s Homicide investigators and Coroner’s investigators are at the scene.
The area where the body was found has a panoramic view of a nearby city. It was approximately six miles from Mount Wilson, where the car of the victim of the murder was found abandoned. The distance between the two locations is a steep slope of rugged terrain, about 3000’ vertical feet lower than the where the car was found.
