The Butte County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue found a Chico man’s body Oct. 8 following an air search of a canyon between Concow and Big Bend.
Robert Gonzales, 53, was first reported missing Oct. 3 by his family, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office.
According to his family, Gonzales went to stay on a friend’s property near Big Bend for a few days, but they had been unable to reach him since Oct. 1.
Two days later, Chico Police officers went to the friend’s property but did not find Gonzales.
Detectives from the Butte County Sheriff’s Office were assigned to the case Oct. 5. They searched the area near Concow for Gonzales but did not locate him, the release said.
Deputies returned to the area to follow up on each of the next two days.
On Oct. 8, five days after originally reported to authority, sheriff’s deputies found the body.
After serving two search warrants on Paiute Drive in Concow, the sheriff’s Investigation and Special Enforcement Units questioned several residents about the Gonzales case, according to a news release. The searches also involved looking for illegal marijuana gardens in Concow.
Deputies confiscated 381 marijuana plants, about 520 pounds of processed marijuana and 39 firearms from the Concow property.
At the same time, they arrested Garreston Murphy and booked into the Butte County Jail on four felonies and three misdemeanors.
The investigation into Gonzales’ death is ongoing. The sheriff’s office is treating this case as suspicious because the Gonzales family says it was out of character for him to be out of touch for so long.