Location: Rd 36 and Ave 134, Waukena

Incident Date: 4/9/19

Case Number: 19-04215

City: Waukena

Posted by: Media Relations

On Saturday 04/06/2019 around 10 a.m., Deputies from the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office were called to the 2400 block of Ave 184 in the community of Waukena for a report of an abandoned vehicle.

When they arrived, Deputies saw the vehicle was unlocked and the keys were in the ignition. A record check revealed the vehicle was associated with an at-risk missing person identified as Francisco Candelario, who had been reported missing from the City of Torrance. 

Because Mr. Candelario was considered at-risk and there was evidence at the scene that he had gone into a full irrigation canal, the TCSO dive team was called into to conduct dive operations and the Sheriff’s air unit was deployed to search the surrounding area. 

On 4/8/19 around 4:35 p.m., a neighbor reported seeing a person in a canal about a mile and a half east of the initial search area.

Detectives from the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office violent crimes unit, along with detectives and deputies from the dive and search and rescue team, immediately responded to the scene. There, investigators found a man’s body, fitting the description of Mr. Candelario and began recovery operations.

On 4/9/2019 at 9:30 a.m., an autopsy was performed and the man was positively identified as Francisco Candelario. The cause of death was determined to be fresh water drowning and there was no outstanding evidence of significant trauma. 

This case is currently under investigation by the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office Violent Crimes Investigations Unit.  Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office Investigations Unit Detective Miguel Franco or Sergeant Gary Marks at (559) 802-9563 or (800) 808-0488. Anonymous information about this crime can be reported via Tipnow email tcso@tipnow.net, text or voicemail at 559-725-4194, or download the Tipnow app for Android or Apple phones. Refer to case number 19-04215