The San Juan County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the death of a California woman who was found Oct. 31 by a family of hikers on a remote trail in the Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness about 24 miles south of Bloomfield.
Katherine Stukenberg, 81, of Hemet, California, was found wearing a red hoodie and had her purse and driver’s license nearby, according to the incident report.
The body was found an hour’s hike from a parking lot, where investigators discovered a silver Toyota RAV4, the report states.
Inside the vehicle were two suitcases, one filled with women’s clothing and the other with men’s clothing, the report states.
Sheriff’s detectives determined that Stukenberg was traveling with her husband, Gerald Francis Stukenberg, 86, who also was missing, the report says.
A search party was organized to try to locate Gerald Stukenberg, according to the report.
Katherine Stukenberg’s body was sent to Albuquerque for an autopsy.
