By G. T. Houts
Update 2 – Sunday October 22, 3:11 p.m.
On Saturday October 21, at 7:47 p.m. the San Bernardino County Coroner’s office identified the victim as Jessica “Jace” Elyce Wider, 32 year of age of Lake Arrowhead, CA.
San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department are still searching for the woman who discovered Widner’s body.
Investigators have not determined the exact circumstances surrounding Widner’s death but they think part of the cave collapsed and buried her, according to the Coroner’s website.
Update 1 – Friday October 20, 9:28 p.m.
Body initially identified as male, once removed from cave it was determined to be a female.
Original story
Crestline, CA – On October 19, 2017, at approximately 7:19 p.m., deputies from the Twin Peaks Station responded to the area of Highland Drive and Scenic View Drive, in the community of Crestline for a death investigation. The San Bernardino County Fire Department received information from an unknown female that a human hand was sticking out of the ground near an old glass bottle dump. The female showed fire personnel where she saw the hand. After directing the fire department to the location, the female left the scene.
Twin Peaks deputies arrived on scene at approximately 7:30 p.m. and observed a small cave dug into the hillside. After looking inside of the cave, deputies saw what appeared to be a human hand sticking out from the dirt. The coroner’s office was notified of the discovery and responded to the scene. Although the circumstances surrounding the person’s death is still under investigation, it appears a portion of the cave collapsed and buried the subject. Due to the possibility of the cave further collapsing on investigators, a specialized recovery effort will take place to remove the body. Deputies and Coroner Investigators uncovered a portion of the subject’s body and were able to see he was wearing a white plaid style shirt and blue jeans along with a baseball cap.
Deputies would like to speak to the woman who made the discovery in order to obtain additional information.
Anyone with information about the case is also urged to contact the Twin Peaks Sheriff’s Station (909) 336-0600. Callers wishing to remain anonymous can call the We-tip Hotline at 1-800-78-CRIME (27463) or you may leave information on the We-tip Website at http://www.wetip.com.
Please refer to Deputy Brian Butts or Public Information Officer Gil Flores.