Photos of rhinos being reintroduced to a national park in Uganda

KIDEPO VALLY NATIONAL PARK, Uganda (AP) — Rhinos have been reintroduced to Uganda's Kidepo Valley National Park after populations there were wiped out by poaching.

This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.

A rhinoceros stands inside the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary after being darted, which will put it to sleep, as rangers prepare to relocate it to Kidepo Valley National Park in north-eastern Uganda, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Dipak)

A southern white rhinoceros stands outside a transportation crate at Kidepo Valley National Park, after being relocated from a private ranch in Uganda, Tuesday, March 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Dipak)

Rangers work with a rhinoceros after it was transported in a crate to Kidepo Valley National Park in north-eastern Uganda, Tuesday, March 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Dipak)

A truck carrying a rhinoceros in a transportation crate arrives at Kidepo Valley National Park in north-eastern Uganda, Tuesday, March 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Dipak)

Veterians label a rhino that was relocated to Kidepo Valley National Park in north-eastern Uganda, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Dipak)

A ranger darts a rhinoceros at Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary before relocating it to Kidepo Valley National Park in north-eastern Uganda, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Dipak)

Veterinarians label a rhinoceros at the Kidepo Rhino Sanctuary before it is released to the wild in north-eastern Uganda, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Dipak)

A rhinoceros gets labeled at the Kidepo Rhino Sanctuary before being released to the wild in north-eastern Uganda, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Dipak)

Rangers prepare a rhinoceros for transport from the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary to Kidepo Valley National Park in north-eastern Uganda, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Dipak)

A rhinoceros stands in a transportation crate as it is relocated to Kidepo Valley National Park in north-eastern Uganda, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Dipak)

ARROYO GRANDE, Calif. (AP) — A California sheriff said Friday that evidence suggests human remains were present at a home connected to the man convicted of killing Kristin Smart, a 19-year-old college student who went missing in 1996.

San Luis Obispo County Sheriff Ian Parkinson said they cannot say whether the remains are those of Smart.

The office served a search warrant Wednesday on the home of Susan Flores, whose son Paul Flores was convicted in 2022 of killing Smart. Authorities have not answered questions about what prompted the search, but scientists specializing in human decomposition and soil took samples from the ground.

“We believe that based on what we’re looking at evidence-wise -- scientific-wise -- that a human’s remains were there at one time -- or still there. We can’t call it Kristin, but there’s evidence to support human remains,” Parkinson said during a news conference.

Tim Nelligan, an expert in soil vapor testing, confirmed by phone Thursday that he was on the premises, gathering samples from the yards of Flores and a neighbor. He said his team has, in general, “come up with a methodology to assess soil vapor" and its relation to “human cadaver decomposition,” but that he could not discuss the current investigation.

Smart went missing from California Polytechnic State University in May 1996 after returning from an off-campus party. Prosecutors alleged she was killed during an attempted rape and that the last person she was seen with was Paul Flores, a fellow student. She was declared legally dead in 2002.

The decades-old case has captivated the public, fueled in part by a podcaster who helped investigators by bringing forward additional witnesses. Chris Lambert of the “Your Own Backyard” podcast first reported the search of the home in the central coast town of Arroyo Grande, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) northwest of Los Angeles.

Attempts to reach Susan Flores for comment Wednesday and Thursday were not successful. She has never faced criminal charges related to the case.

Nelligan and other scientists poked instruments into the soil and pulled up long tubing. Soil vapor sampling, which is an evolving science, involves collecting underground gas samples to detect volatile organic compounds associated with human decomposition.

Lambert, the podcaster, said he did not know much about the search, but was optimistic investigators could locate Smart's body. He said past searches of Susan Flores' home have never been thorough.

“This property in particular has been overlooked for quite some time," he said Thursday in front of the house.

Paul Flores and his father, Ruben Flores, were arrested in 2021.

Prosecutors alleged Smart’s remains were buried on Ruben Flores’ property and later moved. He was acquitted of accessory charges. That property is different from the one currently being searched.

Paul Flores was sentenced in March 2023 to prison, where he has been physically attacked at least twice. In 2024, a judge ruled that he must pay just over $350,000 to Smart's family for costs they incurred after her death.

The family has said it would forgo restitution if Flores would tell them where the woman's body was. Flores’ attorney, Harold Mesick, said in 2024 that the defense did not know where her remains are. Flores maintains his innocence.

FILE - Paul Flores listens during his murder trial in Monterey County Superior Court in Salinas, Calif., on July 18, 2022. (Daniel Dreifuss/Monterey County Weekly via AP, Pool, File)

This photo provided by San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office shows authorities conducting a search on Wednesday, May 6, 2026, at a home in Arroyo Grande, Calif., connected to the man convicted of killing Kristin Smart. (San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office via AP)

FILE - This undated photo released by the FBI shows Kristin Smart, the California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo student who disappeared in 1996. (FBI via AP, File)

Scientists take samples from the soil Thursday, May 7, 2026, from the neighboring yard of a home in Arroyo Grande, Calif., connected to the man convicted of killing Kristin Smart as part of a sheriff's investigation. (AP Photo/Haven Daley) CORRECTION: Corrects from authorities to scientists

Scientists take samples from the soil Thursday, May 7, 2026, from the front yard of a home in Arroyo Grande, Calif., connected to the man convicted of killing Kristin Smart as part of a sheriff's investigation. (AP Photo/Haven Daley) CORRECTION: Corrects from authorities to scientists

Scientists take samples from the soil Thursday, May 7, 2026, from the neighboring yard of a home in Arroyo Grande, Calif., connected to the man convicted of killing Kristin Smart as part of a sheriff's investigation. (AP Photo/Haven Daley) CORRECTION: Corrects from authorities to scientists