An Anaheim couple who went missing two weeks ago on Mother's Day were found Sunday afternoon near Warner Springs, authorities and family members said.
Cecil "Paul" Knutson, 79, was found dead, while his wife, 68-year-old Dianna Bedwell, was alive yet severely dehydrated, according to a private investigator for the family.
The San Diego County Sheriff's Department reported that two missing people were found at Lost Valley Boy Scouts Camp in Warner Springs. A call came in about 2:30 p.m. regarding the individuals, a sheriff official said. Cal Fire also reported a dehydrated woman had been airlifted to a hospital.
Authorities said Knutson and Bedwell were last seen leaving the Valley View Casino in Valley Center about 2 p.m. on May 10. Relatives told the Sheriff's Department the couple planned on going to their son's home in the Riverside County desert city of La Quinta, but they never arrived.
Knutson and Bedwell were in their 2014 white Hyundai Sonata when they went missing, authorities said.
Sheriff's Lt. Ken Nelson said Sunday night they were found about 25 miles east of the casino near a Boy Scouts camp on the Los Coyotes Indian Reservation.
Knutson's body was found near the couple's car, and Bedwell was inside the vehicle.
Their disappearance led to several ground and aerial searches of the backcountry, but it was someone in an off-road vehicle who found the pair. Authorities said cups placed around the vehicle suggested the couple survived on rain water.
Nelson said sheriff's homicide investigators were able to get a brief statement from Bedwell at the hospital.
"The preliminary investigation indicates the couple became lost soon after leaving the casino while attempting to find a shortcut to their ultimate destination," he said. "They remained with their vehicle until ultimately found."
On Sunday evening, a Facebook page launched by the couple's family and called "Missing Paul and Dianna" posted a picture of the two along with a message that read, "It is them. Rest in peace dad."
Another post said, "I got to talk to Mom on the phone we exchanged I love yous."
