Mariposa County sheriff issues update on mysterious family death near Yosemite
The Mariposa County Sheriff’s Office released its monthly update on its investigation of a family of three and their dog who died mysteriously in August.
Few new details were available Thursday in the latest release from the sheriff’s office but the interest into what happened to John Gerrish, Ellen Chung, 1-year-old daughter Miju and the family dog has led investigators to release regular updates
“Our current priorities remain supporting and informing the Gerrish (and) Chung family during this tragic time,” Sheriff Jeremy Briese said in a news release. “As we navigate through this investigation with the family, we will later share our findings with the public.”
The bodies of the family and their dog, Oski, were found near the Devil’s Gulch area in the South Fork of the Merced River drainage on Aug. 17. The isolated location is about 15 miles southwest of the El Portal entrance to Yosemite National Park on Highway 140.
Interviews and tests are ongoing in the investigation, the release said, though there was nothing new to report on Thursday. The sheriff’s office said there is no timeline for when the toxicology results will be available.
Causes of death ruled out by sheriff’s office
Authorities have ruled out the use of a gun or any other type of weapon. The family was also not killed by lightning strike, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, cyanide exposure, illegal drugs, alcohol or suicide. All other causes of death remain possible, deputies say.
The family had moved from San Francisco to Mariposa County during the pandemic.
According to a family friend, Gerrish was originally from England and has worked as a software engineer for Google and SnapChat. Chung originally was from Orange in Southern California and was a yoga instructor prior to her pregnancy.
Their vehicle was found by search teams near a Sierra National Forest gate in Yosemite National Park.
This story was originally published September 30, 2021 at 1:53 PM with the headline "Mariposa County sheriff issues update on mysterious family death near Yosemite."
