NORTH COAST, Calif. — Authorities said they have arrested a Ukiah man for the murder of a Laytonville man last week.
Christopher Franklin Hill, 20, was arrested earlier this week for killing Aaron Joseph Vossler, 18, according to a report from Lt. Andrew Porter of the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office.
Porter said that on Thursday Mendocino County Sheriff's deputies assigned to the North Sector were dispatched to contact a resident of Laytonville regarding a missing person's report.
The reporting person reported Vossler had been traveling with a friend known only by a nickname. The pair left Laytonville on Sept. 26 in a black Toyota Prius and they were supposed to be traveling to a known address in the city of Ukiah.
Vossler did not return home and the reporting person contacted his friends in an attempt to locate him, Porter said.
Porter said the reporting person learned from one of Vossler's friends that he never arrived at the reported destination in Ukiah and Vossler had not made any recent social media posts, which was unusual.
A missing person's report was taken at that time with the deputies conducting a follow up investigation in an attempt to locate Vossler, according to Porter’s report.
Deputies started to hear rumors that Vossler had possibly been the victim of foul play; however they had a difficult time substantiating any of the information, Porter said.
Porter said sheriff's detectives began to assist the patrol deputies throughout the weekend and on Monday they were able to contact someone who possibly had seen Vossler just before his disappearance.
This person was identified as Hill and he was contacted at a family member's residence in the 8200 block of East Side Road in Potter Valley, Porter said.
While at the location, sheriff's detectives along with a patrol sergeant interviewed Hill and they were able to observe evidence of a possible violent crime in and about Hill's vehicle. Porter said a search warrant was obtained for the residence and Hill's vehicle.
During the search warrant service on Monday, human remains were located in a shallow grave on the property, Porter said.
Porter said Hill was subsequently booked into the Mendocino County Jail on the charge of murder as a result.
The scene was maintained by Sheriff's Office personnel throughout the night until Tuesday morning, Porter said.
Crime scene specialists from the California Department of Justice assisted the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office, Mendocino County Major Crimes Task Force and Investigators from the Mendocino County District Attorney's Office in processing the crime scene, which Porter said included exhuming the human remains from the grave.
Once exhumed, the remains were identified as being Vossler, Porter said.
This investigation is ongoing, and any persons who may have information about this incident are encouraged to contact the Mendocino County Sheriff's Investigative Services Unit by calling the Sheriff's Office Tip line at 707-234-2100 or the WeTip anonymous crime reporting hotline at 1-800-782-7463.
Ukiah man arrested for killing Laytonville resident
- LAKE COUNTY NEWS REPORTS