Kristin Smart case: father and son arrested 1:46
(CNN) --
A California jury has convicted Paul Flores of the 1996 first-degree murder of Kristin Smart, CNN affiliates KOVR and KEYT report.
Meanwhile, another jury found Flores' father, Ruben, now 81, not guilty, who was accused of being an accessory to Smart's murder, according to CNN affiliates KION and KEYT.
Prosecutors alleged that Flores, now 45, raped or attempted to rape Smart and killed her in her bedroom while he and the victim were students at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and that her father helped move her body to their home in nearby Arroyo Grande, hiding his body for a time under cover.
Jury deliberations resume in Kristin Smart's 1996 murder case against Rubén Flores
Smart's disappearance haunted idyllic San Luis Obispo, a small college town of just over 47,000 people, less than 10 miles from the Pacific Ocean.
Community posters featured Smart's face and asked for help in solving his mysterious disappearance.
The Smart case drew more public interest, with the popularity of a podcast delving into his disappearance called "Your Own Backyard," which debuted in 2019. That podcast and authorities identified Paul Flores as the last person to see Smart alive. .
Both were 19-year-old freshmen at the campus, which has a reputation for being among the most selective and academically rigorous in the California state system.
Smart's body has not been recovered so far.
But nearly 25 years after their disappearance, authorities said new evidence led to the arrest of Paul and Rubén Flores in April 2021.
Deputy District Attorney Christopher Peuvrelle told jurors during his trial in July that searches of Ruben Flores' home turned up soil samples that tested positive for human blood, CNN affiliate KSBY reported.
In documents filed in the case, a sheriff's office detective stated that investigators are "in possession of biological evidence that leads them to believe that the victim was buried under cover by the defendant (Ruben Flores) at some point."
Prosecutors believe the father and son moved the body to another location before authorities searched the property, affiliates KEYT and KRON reported.
The Flores' attorneys vehemently asserted their clients' innocence, repeatedly citing a lack of eyewitnesses and evidence.
"A bunch of conspiracy theories that aren't backed up by the facts," said Paul Flores' attorney, Robert Sanger, describing the prosecution's case, according to CNN affiliate KEYT.
Harold Mesick, the attorney for Ruben Flores, said in his closing argument that the case "is clearly reasonable doubt," according to KSBY.
Paul Flores pleads not guilty to killing Kristin Smart
"Paul Flores and his father did not bury this woman," Mesick added.
The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office said Smart was last seen near her bedroom but never made it to her room.
He had no identification, money or extra clothing when he disappeared, authorities said.
Smart was declared dead in 2002.
After authorities arrested Paul and Ruben Flores a year and a half ago, Kristin Smart's family called it a bittersweet day.
"Although Kristin's caring spirit will always live in our hearts, our life without her hugs, laughter and smiles is a pain that never diminishes," they said in a statement.
John Segale, a family spokesman, told CNN that Denise and Stan Smart are retired educators and live in Stockton, California.
"Justice delayed does not have to be justice denied," Peuvrelle said in his closing argument last week, KSBY reported.
"The truth is that Kristin was ripped off the face of the Earth by Paul Flores."
The murder trial was moved to Monterey County after a San Luis Obispo County judge ruled that the Floreses could not have a fair trial there due to excessive pre-trial publicity, KSBY reported.
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