SAN DIEGO — A mysterious death in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park is leading to unanswered questions about a woman who is still missing.
The remains of former Navy SEAL, John Fitzpatrick, were found last month in the desert park, according to insiders who said the family of the deceased has been notified. Fitzpatrick's missing companion was a female Chinese national who had flown to the United States to meet up with him.
Fitzpatrick, 52, and Fang Jin, 47, first met on social media. They soon wanted to meet in person. Jin lived in China. She promised her family she would keep in touch after flying to Los Angels on July 14 and eventually meeting up with Fitzpatrick in Palm Springs on July 15.
On July 16, the couple was seen on surveillance video purchasing toiletries inside the Marine Corps Exchange at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, a military base in Twentynine Palms.
Fitzpatrick was a former Navy SEAL, honorably discharged in 2010, who lived at the Roadrunner Mobile Home Park in nearby Morongo Valley.
The pair reportedly took at least one hiking trip to the desert. Jin was staying at the mobile home with Fitzpatrick. Photographs obtained from a friend of Fitzpatrick showed Jin cleaning inside the mobile home.
Jin continued to send photos to her family in China until the messages suddenly stopped. The last video Jin sent to her family was recorded at night on July 22 on Adobe Road in Twentynine Palms a few miles from the Marine Corps base, CBS 8 has confirmed.
Relatives reported Jin missing on July 26. A friend reported Fitzpatrick missing four days later on July 30. San Bernardino County Sheriff put out missing persons fliers for both Fitzpatrick and Jin.
On August 1, investigators served a search warrant on Fitzpatrick's mobile home looking for evidence. CBS 8 obtained a copy of the search warrant, affidavit, and inventory from the Joshua Tree District courthouse in San Bernardino County.
The warrant said officers seized suitcases belonging to Jin, a straw hat, and Jin’s white purse with her belongings inside. Officers also smelled something disturbing inside the mobile home, the odor of decomposition.
On August 3, San Bernardino County Sheriff’s investigators served a second search warrant at Fitzpatrick’s mobile home, seizing three iPhone cell phones, according to an inventory list left at the home. That second search warrant remains sealed at the Joshua Tree courthouse.
For a month and a half, the couple remained missing until Fitzpatrick's truck was located in the Harper Flats area of the Anza-Borrego desert. Later, a hiker found skeletal remains in the Harper Canyon area on September 17, according to the man who found the bones and spoke with CBS 8. He asked not to be identified.
CBS 8 also obtained photographs of the remains depicting a skull and jawbone separated from other remains nearby.
Fitzpatrick's autopsy remained sealed at the request of the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department. A cause of death was not released by the Sheriff’s department.
San Diego Sheriff’s media relations Lieutenant David LaDieu emailed CBS 8 the following statement:
“On Sunday, September 17, 2023, the San Diego Sheriff's Department (SDSD) Homicide Unit was notified by the Rural Command of found human remains in the Harper Flats region of Borrego Springs. Campers in the area located the remains and notified law enforcement. The SDSD Homicide Unit responded to the found remains to document the scene and process it for evidence. At this time, the identity of the human remains has not been confirmed by the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office. Previously, a blue Toyota Tacoma truck was located in the Harper Flat’s area several miles from where the human remains were located. Members of the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department with the assistance of California State Parks and the San Diego Sheriff's Department located and searched the vehicle as part of their missing persons investigations. The vehicle was registered to John Root Fitzpatrick who was reported as a missing person to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department in July of 2023. Fang "Yama" Jin, a Chinese female visiting the United States was believed to have been with John Root Fitzpatrick and was also reported missing in July of 2023 to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department. The Sheriff’s Department has conducted several search and rescue operations in the Harper Flats area since the location of the vehicle and has plans for additional searches. At this time, the missing persons cases for John Root Fitzpatrick and Fang "Yama" Jin, are open investigations with the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department. The located unidentified human remains case is an open investigation with the San Diego Sheriff's Department. Both departments are working together under the likelihood that the cases are related to ensure the cases are investigated fully with all the applicable resources.”
The man who said he found the bones told CBS 8 the remains were located in Harper Canyon several miles away from Harper Flats. He also said an officer who responded to the scene told him Fitzpatrick's truck had been found previously, "pretty wrecked." The man did not know the exact date the truck had been found.
A friend of John Fitzpatrick, who asked not to be identified, told CBS 8 that investigators notified family members in early October that the remains were, in fact, those of John Fitzpatrick. An identification card was located on the body, according to the friend, who added that dental and fingerprint identification was not possible due the condition of the remains.
The San Diego Union Tribune first broke the news that the remains found in the Anza-Borrego desert were those of John Fitzpatrick.
The big question now is, where is Fang Jin?
San Bernardino County Sheriff emailed CBS 8 a series of statements confirming Jin was last heard from on July 22 and her cell phone has not been found.
“The missing person case for Fang Jin remains open. There are no updates at this time. The investigators are aware of the video and believe it was the last communication Jin’s family received from her. We did not receive any phone pings from Jin’s phone,” San Bernardino Sheriff spokesperson Mara Rodriguez wrote.
Additionally, the spokesperson said she could not confirm reports that John Fitzpatrick's cell phone last pinged in Julian.
If you have any information about the death of John Fitzpatrick, call the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department. If you have any info about missing person, Fang Jin, contact the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.
WATCH RELATED: Search warrant served on ranch of missing woman Dia Abrams