California nudist community ‘on edge’ after ‘nightmare’ double murder; next-door neighbor arrested

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Members of a nudist resort outside of Los Angeles said their once idyllic community has dissolved into a “nightmare” after the neighbor of a California couple was charged in their murder.

“It’s a nightmare,” Tony Wiley, 69, told People. “You hear stuff like this on the news, but you never imagine in a lifetime that it would be one of your friends, and in such a bizarre way.”

Laurie Riffel, 69, told the outlet residents feel “on guard” following the double murder.

“There’s a dark cloud over us,” she said. “There’s just a feeling of being on guard all the time, an apprehension of not being safe here.”

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The feeling of uneasiness came after the Redlands Police Department announced the arrest of 62-year-old Michael Sparks Aug. 30 in the death of Stephanie and Daniel Menard at the Olive Dell Ranch in Colton. He was later charged with two counts of murder.

The Menards were last seen Aug. 24, police say.  (Redlands Police Department)

In a press conference following the discovery of the Menards’ remains, City of Redlands spokesperson Carl Baker said Sparks was found hiding underneath his home Thursday night after not responding to police for several hours.

He had been hiding inside a 5-foot deep concrete space under the home, which forced officers to remove the front wall of the house, police said.

Baker said the suspect attempted to commit suicide when police first discovered him hiding.

“He did have a rifle, and he did attempt to kill himself when police discovered him, but the rifle misfired,” Baker said. 

The next morning, a cadaver dog was used to search for the couple’s bodies at Sparks’ home. Baker said “the dog did alert, indicating the presence of a body somewhere underneath the house.”

Michael Royce Sparks, 62, was charged with two counts of murder. (Redlands Police Department)

Members of the clothing-optional community told People tensions between the Menards and Sparks reached a breaking point over the pruning of a tree that shaded their properties.

“I’ve talked to them, and I know they had an issue about a tree getting cut because of branches going over to the Menards’ place,” Tony Garrett, 63, told People. “But I can’t say that’s all of it. I can’t say it’s just one thing.”

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“When I first got here, he was telling me which neighbors he liked, which neighbors he could do without, and then he pointed in their direction. He goes, ‘And I hate those f—ers,'” Tammie Wilkerson, 61, told People. 

“I’m like, ‘Dang, Sparky, that’s a little rough.’ And that’s when he told me the tree thing. I was thinking it’s a lot to hate somebody. There may be other reasons. I don’t know. Only he knows.

“I don’t know if that’s what caused this or if he just snapped one day. I really don’t know.”

The Redlands Police Department says the Menards’ dog, Cuddles, has not been found. (Redlands Police Department)

Residents remembered the couple for their warm personalities. 

“They had a great little home for the two of them and their dog,” the couple’s friend, Michelle Ann Archambault Reese, told People. “They had a beautiful outside patio area to kick back at. They were just somebody you wanted a hug from. They were just wonderful people.”

Neighbors said Sparks appeared to be more of a loner.

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“You’d see him once in a while, but mostly he liked his hot tub,” said Garrett. “He wasn’t a bad guy. He was no different than the other residents. Just a little more quiet, a little more reserved.”

“He said he hated the ‘textile world’ and that he had always been a nudist from as long as he could remember,” Wilkerson told the outlet.

Sarah Rumpf-Whitten is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. 

Story tips and ideas can be sent to sarah.rumpf@fox.com and on X: @s_rumpfwhitten.