Man charged with Kristin Smart's murder 25 years after the California student went missing

The prime suspect in the 1996 murder of a teenage college student has been arrested.

Paul Flores, 44, was believed to be the last person seen with Kristin Smart on the California Polytechnic State University campus in San Luis Obispo on May 25, 1996. The 19-year-old had suddenly disappeared as she made her way back to campus after a party.

According to reports, Flores, a longtime suspect in the 25-year-old case, was arrested along with his 80-year-old father Ruben Flores.

News of their arrest comes after Ruben Flores' home was searched last month by police with the aid of dogs and ground-penetrating radar. The search ultimately resulted in new evidence linking the pair to the crime.

However, despite the new evidence, the victim's body is yet to be found.

San Luis Obispo County Sheriff Ian Parkinson said at a news conference, per the Guardian, "We have not recovered Kristin. We will continue to focus on finding her remains regardless of any court action."

Smart's family have expressed their devastation and "pain" at the sheer amount of time the case has been left unresolved, despite their persistent pleas for answers.

They said, according to Sky News: "The knowledge that a father and son, despite our desperate pleas for help, could have withheld this horrible secret for nearly 25 years, denying us the chance to lay our daughter to rest, is an unrelenting and unforgiving pain."

Flores and Smart were both students at California Polytechnic State University campus when she mysteriously vanished.

The 44-year-old has been a suspect since the beginning after two students who were with Smart when she was on her way home said he would help her get back safely. However, she would never be seen alive again.

After several new leads, witnesses, and renewed momentum in the case, the authorities intercepted Flores' phone and searched his home. Police also tested cars owned by him and his father in 1996 for potential DNA evidence.

Paul Flores is being held without bail and Ruben Flores is on $250,000 bail. The latter is suspected of being an accessory to murder, The LA Times reported.

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