KMIR 6 - Palm Springs News, Weather, Sports83-Year-Old Palm Springs Man Found Dead
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By: Ciara Coyle - KMIR6 Reporter
Right now, the family of a Palm Springs man is dealing with the news they hoped would never come.
The Riverside County Sheriff's Department identified a man found dead in a remote area of Thermal, as 83-year-old William Findlay. Findlay had been missing for two weeks. He was driving from Carlsbad, near San Diego, to his house in Palm Springs. On the day he left Carlsbad, he was pulled over by police in the town of Julian, in eastern San Diego county. Findlay had allegedly been driving erratically, but police found him disoriented and lost. Officers directed him to a nearby hotel where he spent the night. The following day, Findlay was seen getting in his car around 9:00a.m., leaving the hotel.
Findlay was discovered dead in his 1990's Cadillac on Sunday, September 28th. The car was parked two miles up a dirt road off of Airport Boulevard in Thermal. His family says findlay was on six different medications. Investigators believe the 83-year-old became disoriented and took many wrong turns trying to get from Julian to Palm Springs. They say probably got stuck on the isolated road. He did not have a cell phone.
Findlay's daughter Lynette told KMIR that it was an off-road motorcyclist who alerted the Sheriff's Department of the Cadillac on the dirt road. She says the motorcyclist actually noticed Findlay in his car the week prior, but thought he was sleeping so he did not call anyone. After seeing the same car again a week later, the biker was prompted to call authorities.
Investigators say Findlay's two dogs were also found dead inside the car with him. They've ruled out foul play because his wallet and some jewelry were also inside the car.
