A California neighbor accused of murdering an elderly couple at a nudist farm is hating on the victims after police found human remains under their home, according to reports.
Redlands Police recovered human remains from a concrete bunker at the home of Michael Royce Sparks just after 2:30 p.m. Friday.
“Members of the Redlands fire department, who are certified in space operations, entered the room under the suspect’s home and began removing evidence bags,” said Redlands Police spokesman Carl Baker during a press conference.
“I can now confirm the presence of human remains under the house,” he said.
The gruesome discovery came less than 24 hours after Sparks was arrested and charged with the murders of Stephanie and Daniel Menard, who had been missing from the Olive Dell Ranch nudist resort since Sunday.
A cadaver dog alerted police to the basement where Sparks had been pulled since Thursday night.
Police executed a search warrant at a Sparks home on Thursday when the suspect was uncooperative with police using an armored police vehicle with a hydraulic battering ram that tore through the home.
Sparks, 62, was found under the house and “voluntarily surrendered last night after a lengthy negotiation,” Baker said Friday.
The investigation operation was postponed until Saturday morning as the ground structure showed signs of potential collapse.
The San Bernardino County Coroner’s Office is examining the remains but has not confirmed that the couple is missing.
The Menards and their dog, a Shih Tzu named Cuddles, were reported missing by a friend last Sunday after they were last seen leaving their home the day before.
Police said Menards’ unlocked vehicle was in the driveway from her home that same day, as Stephanie Menard’s purse was inside her home along with her and Daniel’s cell phones.
Tammie Wilkerson, another Olive Dell Ranch member of the nudist resort, revealed that Sparks seemed to have a deep hatred for the elderly neighbors.
“They didn’t like him,” Wilkerson told KCAL. “She hates him and she told me that many times.
“That’s a stupid excuse,” he explained. “They had a tree that was on their property line and Dan used it to cut limbs and (Sparks) hated it. That made them hate each other.”
Wilkerson claimed he drove Sparks, known to neighbors as “Sparky” to the store several times to buy materials for the underground shelter.
“I can’t imagine people would be buying bags and bags of cement, almost every day,” Wilkerson told KABC. “I asked him one time, I said, ‘Sparky, what are you doing with all that cement?’ and he’s like, ‘I have a guy project that I’m doing,’ and I’m like ‘ok.’”
Other neighbors said they were unaware of the tension between Sparks and Menards.
“Always friendly, always respectful, never aggressive, never mean, just a very sweet person,” Christopher Hernandez told the outlet about Sparks.
Police have not revealed the alleged motive for the murder.
Sparks is being held without bond at the San Bernardino West Valley Detention Center.
He is scheduled to appear in court on September 3.
