SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (AP) — Actor Julian Sands’ family has released their first statement five months after he disappeared while hiking in California.
“We continue to carry Julian in our hearts and fondly remember him as a wonderful father, husband, explorer, lover of nature and the arts, and an original and collaborative artist,” the statement said.
Sands, the 65-year-old British-born actor best known for his role in the 1985 film A Room With a View, has been married to journalist Evgenia Citkowitz for more than three decades and has three adult children.
They said they are “deeply grateful to the search teams and coordinators who worked tirelessly to find Julian.”
A search for Sands on June 17 at Mount Baldy in Southern California, the eighth organized search since his disappearance, was unsuccessful, authorities said. However, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said the case remains active.
Sands, a longtime avid hiker and climber, was reported missing Jan. 13 after setting out on a hike up the massive mountain, which rises more than 10,000 feet (3,048 meters) east of Los Angeles and in the winter of was hit by severe storms.
Authorities said that while the warmer weather enabled the recent search, parts of the mountain remained inaccessible due to dangerous conditions.