He Vanished While Hiking With His Boy Scout Troop And Was Left Behind After Growing Tired

On July 19, 1991, 12-year-old Jared Negrete disappeared while hiking to the summit of San Gorgonio Mountain in San Bernardino National Forest, California, with his Boy Scout Troop. It was his first overnight camping trip with the troop.

San Gorgonio Mountain is 11,500 feet high, and they were hiking to the summit. About 1,000 feet from the summit, Jared grew tired and was told to remain behind alone while everyone else completed the hike. He was last seen at around 6:00 p.m.

When the Scout troop returned, Jared was gone. Once they realized he had disappeared, they headed back to the base camp, hiking about five miles in the dark, to seek help.

The police searched an area of 130 square miles in the rocky, tree-lined San Gorgonio wilderness. After three days, they narrowed the search to an area of six square miles, where a footprint that was believed to match Jared's shoes was found. Searchers also found some beef jerky and candy wrappers that Jared had dropped.

His camera was located as well. There were 12 pictures in the film roll, most of which were landscape shots taken before he went missing.

The final picture on the roll was of Jared's nose and eyes. He appeared to have pointed the camera at his face and snapped the photo with the flash on.

It is possible that the boy had lost his camera while sliding down the mountainside. Searchers noted that the terrain where he disappeared was surrounded by slippery slopes, loose rocks, and ravines.

A blue water bottle was found, but it was not confirmed to be Jared's. It was likely that a flash flood had washed it down the mountain. No other sign of Jared was located on the mountain.

According to authorities, there was sufficient water on the mountain, and the temperatures were warm enough for him to survive on his own for a few days.

State of California Department of Justice - pictured above is Jared

Officials from the Boy Scouts of America acknowledged that safety procedures may have been violated during the overnight camping trip.

Dennis Knight, the adult Scoutmaster, had failed to bring along another adult to supervise the hike. In addition, he did not submit a description of the planned hike to the local Boy Scout council or follow the rule of letting the slowest hiker set the pace.

Sadly, Jared's case remains unsolved. At the time of his disappearance, Jared was an eighth grader living in El Monte, Los Angeles County, California. He was of Hispanic background and had black hair and brown eyes.

He was five feet and two inches tall and weighed 150 pounds. He was wearing a tan T-shirt (possibly Boy Scout style), green Boy Scout pants, and a pair of black high-top Pro Wings sneakers.

He wore glasses with brown plastic rims and had a small birthmark on his right cheek. He was carrying a blue two-quart canteen full of water when he vanished.

If you have any information about Jared's case, you are urged to contact the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Office at 909-387-3690.

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