Missing motorcyclist from central California found dead in Los Angeles County

A motorcyclist reported missing in central California was found dead near the 5 Freeway in Los Angeles County, authorities said Wednesday.

According to the public information officer for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Santa Clarita station, Kern County authorities contacted the LASD about a “critically missing” motorcyclist Tuesday around 6:35 p.m.

More than 12 hours later, officers from the California Highway Patrol's Newhall Station were dispatched to the area of ​​Ridge Route Road and Shadow Lake Lane for reports of a traffic collision involving a single motorcycle.

Initial reports indicated the motorcyclist was riding on a canyon road near the highway and fell off a cliff. When police arrived on scene around 7:30 a.m. Wednesday, they found the driver of a Harley-Davidson motorcycle on an embankment.

The rider, identified by the LASD and CHP as Rita Flasch, was pronounced dead at the scene by the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

Search and rescue teams from the Santa Clarita Sheriff's Station worked with Kern County Sheriff's Office officials to contact Flasch's family and ping his cell phone, law enforcement said. order.

The scene was cleared early Wednesday afternoon.

The cause of the accident remains unclear.