VW Crash Victim ID'd Almost 50 Years Later Through DNA: RivCo Sheriff

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — It's been over 48 years since an unidentified young man was killed in a Riverside County crash. This week, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department Coroner's Bureau announced the passenger's identity.

Mark Alan Smith was among four people killed in the Riverside collision on June 2, 1978, said Coroner Sgt. Nancy Rissi.

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Smith died after the driver of a Volkswagen Beetle — loaded with five teenagers —lost control on westbound Arlington Avenue, crossed the center divider and struck a sport utility vehicle, according to Rissi's report.

The driver of the Volkswagen, who was not named in the report, was the only survivor in the crash. He told investigators at that time that he had met the passenger, later identified as Smith, the day before and knew little about him. The other three deceased victims were identified during that time.

"Despite years of investigative efforts, the victim remained unidentified until now, nearly 50 years after his death," Rissi said.

The Bureau of Justice Assistance's Missing and Unidentified Human Remains grant program provided resources to the sheriff's coroner's bureau to conduct the exhumation, while the nonprofit GenGenies funded the forensic genetic genealogy work that produced the leads needed to identify Smith.

Pam Bright, his sister, expressed her and her family's gratefulness for at last identifying her brother's remains.

"We extend our sincere appreciation to GenGenies and the Department of Justice's Missing Persons DNA Program, whose expertise and commitment contributed to this outcome (of identifying Smith)," Rissi said. "Together, these efforts have finally given Mark Smith's family the closure they have long awaited."