The San Bernardino Police Department is seeking help from the public in gathering more information for their investigation into an unsolved homicide in 2024, when a man's body was found burned in an empty field.
Officers were called to the field near Duffy Street and Donald Street at around 10:30 p.m. on July 22, 2024, after learning of a body that was found when a fire in the area was extinguished by the San Bernardino Fire Department, according to a news release shared on social media by SBPD detectives.
The blaze was reported in a field behind a row of homes, where the burned body of Mario Brooks, a man in his early 40s, was found. After some investigation, detectives determined that he had died from blunt force trauma.
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Mario Brooks, the man whose burned body was found in a San Bernardino field in July 2024. San Bernardino Police Department
"Though the incident happened almost two years ago, we are requesting your help in this unsolved homicide," SBPD Detective Mark Alvarez said.
No information was provided on a suspect or motive in the homicide as detectives continue working to solve the case.
Detectives said that Brooks was from Florida and had relocated to Maryland, but was temporarily working in California to provide for his family, detectives said. He was last seen at the Candlewood Suites hotel in Loma Linda, approximately 11 miles from where his body was discovered.
Anyone who knows more was asked to contact Detective Alvarez at (909) 998-3385.