Fifth missing person visited Idyllwild regularly

Five people in and around the Idyllwild area are still missing with no further information from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department (RCSD). 

The most recent person to go missing is 27-year-old Diana Perez Gonzalez from the Hemet/San Jacinto area. Maria Sevilla, Gonzalez’s aunt, spoke with the Town Crier Sunday about the disappearance of her niece who was reported missing on Dec. 11. 

According to Sevilla, she was last seen by her boyfriend, Angel McIntire, 26 of Hemet. The couple would visit Idyllwild regularly on their days off, enjoying the trails, parks and National Forest.

Gonzalez and McIntire have an 8-month-old baby together and Gonzalez is pregnant. 

It is unknown if any areas have been searched by RCSD for Gonzalez, or what further efforts have been made locating the other four missing people. The Town Crier emailed the RCSD media information bureau Saturday, but did not receive a response by press time. Sevilla has tried to be patient but has also run into communication walls with RCSD.

“When I’ve tried to talk to the investigators, sometimes they answer and sometimes not,” Sevilla said. “I understand they are busy, but they need to understand we are very worried. I don’t know if they have searched anywhere yet. I’m going to try to talk to them on Monday.”

Four people in addition to Gonzalez remain missing

Eight people have gone missing in the area since March of this year. Five of the eight people, including Gonzalez, remain missing. RCSD media information bureau did not respond to the newspaper’s weekly inquiry Saturday as to whether or not the agency had any updates on the status of Lydia “Dia” Abrams, Roy Prifogle, Melissa Lane and Rosario Garcia.

The newspaper has been asking for updates weekly since early summer.

On Sept. 10, a RCSD SUV was spotted hauling an off-road vehicle near Highway 243 and Saunders Meadow Road.

According to Hemet Sheriff Station Capt. Leonard Purvis, “They were conducting follow-up searches for Melissa Lane.”

While it was unclear exactly where on the mountain deputies were searching for Lane, Purvis also confirmed that the search didn’t provide any further information or evidence of where Lane may have gone missing. That is an update the media information bureau could have provided.

Lane, 41, was last seen June 15, according to a poster that was displayed in the Mountain Center area. The Town Crier spoke to Kathy Lamont, Lane’s mother, right after she was reported missing.

“She was an avid hiker but didn’t have a destination,” Lamont said. “She was last seen in Pine Cove. I don’t know if she’s dead or alive.”

Outside of the search for Lane, the community has not received any updates on the other three missing people. Friends, family and the community have been left in the dark.

Garcia was last seen July 7 wearing a brown shirt and blue jeans in Hemet. Garcia is a 73-year-old Hispanic female and suffers from Alzheimer’s disease. She is 5’ 3” tall and 120 pounds.

Palm Desert deputies from the RCSD were dispatched to the area of 70000 East Highway 74 in Pinyon Pines at 11:46 a.m. July 9 after Garcia’s vehicle was found unoccupied. Garcia was not located after a search of the area was conducted.

Earlier in the year, Prifogle was reported missing after going on a hike in the Pine Cove area Wednesday, March 4. He left home at about 1 p.m. and was last seen at the Pine Cove Market at 6:30 p.m. on the same day. He was last seen wearing a red backpack and jeans.

RCSD Deputy Jeremy Parsons said, “After six full days of searching in between inclement weather, searching 8 to 10 hours per day, Prifogle has not been located. The Riverside Mountain Rescue Unit (RMRU), as well as search and rescue volunteers from San Bernardino County, Orange County and San Diego County, were assisting. In total, about 150 people have been searching during those six days.” Also adding, “On the second or third day of the search, we found his backpack, but have found no other clues as to his whereabouts.”

On Sunday, June 7 at approximately 8:24 a.m., Hemet Station deputies were dispatched to the 58000 block of Bonita Vista in reference to a missing person. Abrams was placed into the system as a missing person.

Abrams is 65 years old, 5’ 5” tall, 130 pounds with blonde hair and blue eyes. She was last seen wearing a black and turquoise jacket, yellow shirt and blue jeans.

According to RMRU, their team of volunteers was dispatched to Abrams’ 160-acre ranch in the Apple Canyon area (between Mountain Center and Garner Valley) June 9. They conducted a search from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. with no success of finding Abrams.

RMRU went out again June 10 to search more difficult areas on the property including a creek bed and the hills overlooking her ranch. All assignments were completed by 6 p.m. At that point, detectives took over the investigation and called off the physical ground search.

If you have any information regarding the whereabouts of Roy Prifogle, Dia Abrams, Rosario Garcia, Diana Perez Gonzalez or Melissa Lane, contact the RCSD at 800-950-2444.