Julian Sands.Photo: charley gallay/wireimage
Actor Julian Sands wasconfirmed deadfive months after he disappeared while hiking in Southern California’s Mount Baldy in January.
Five months later, hikers found human remains that were confirmed to be Sands'.
In July, Sands' death was ruled “undetermined.” A public information officer for the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said that this ruling “is common when dealing with cases of this type.”
On Feb. 10, San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department public information officer Gloria Huerta told PEOPLE that “we remain hopeful but know the outcome may not be what we would like” regarding ongoing searches for the actor.
The actor’s disappearance gained international attention, with family and friends likeJohn Malkovichspeaking out about their relationship with Sands.
Here’s everything to know about Julian Sands' disappearance.
Julian Sands.Kurt Krieger/Corbis/Getty
Initial search crews were pulled out of the area due to inclement weather after just one day into the search, a problem that persisted in the search for the English actor for months later.
In the days after Sands' disappearance, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Departmentadvised in a news releaseshared on Facebook that weather on the mountain was “adverse and extremely dangerous” amid high winds, severe storms across the state and multiple fatalities of other hikers on the mountain.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Eleven days after the actor disappeared, the department shared astatement on Twitterin which it said the department would “continue to utilize the resources” it has at its disposal.
The Sands family said they were grateful for the search teams following his disappearance
Along with the department’s Jan. 23, 2023 update, it shared a statement from the family of Sands whoextended their gratitudeto the “heroic search teams” who continued to aid in the search for the missing actor.
On Jan. 24, the actor’s brother Nick Sands told the U.K.‘sCraven Herald & Pioneerthat he believed Julian, who he said he wasscheduled to meet with for a family eventon Jan. 30, is “gone.”
“He has not yet been declared missing, presumed dead, but I know in my heart that he has gone,” he told the outlet at the time. “However sibling rivalry being what it is, it would be just like him to walk out of there and prove me wrong.”
RELATED VIDEO: Actor Julian Sands Missing After Going Hiking on Deadly Mount Baldy in California
Sands’ family and friends reflected on his life in the weeks after his disappearance
In the January interview, Nick noted to theCraven Herald & Pioneerthat the area surrounding Mt. Baldy “was [Julian’s] favorite place” when he was in Los Angeles. The actor was an active hiker before his disappearance, Nick said.
Actor Malkovich brought further attention to Sands' disappearance on Feb. 20 when he spoke about his friendship with the actor ahead of the premiere of their film at the Berlin Film Festival.
“I’m a godfather to his first son from his first marriage to Sarah, who I know very well,” the actor explained to reporters, according toDeadline. “I introduced him to his second wife, and we have been close since we met in 1993 on the set ofThe Killing Fields.”
“It’s a very sad event,” Malkovich said of Sands' disappearance at the time, according to the outlet.
Sands was confirmed dead over five months after he went missing
“The identification process for the body located on Mt. Baldy on June 24, 2023, has been completed and was positively identified as 65-year-old Julian Sands of North Hollywood. The manner of death is still under investigation, pending further test results,” the San Bernardino County Sheriff-Coroner Department said in a statement. “We would like to extend our gratitude to all the volunteers that worked tirelessly to try to locate Mr. Sands.”
The following month, Sands' death was ruled “undetermined,” a ruling that a public information officer for the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said “is common when dealing with cases of this type.”
source: people.com
