Julian Sands' cause of death is staying a mystery as it has been ruled “undetermined”.
The 65-year-old ‘Leaving Las Vegas’ actor’s body was discovered by hikers in June near Mount Baldy around six months after he went missing during a trek on the then-snow-covered area of the San Gabriel Mountains, California, and the ruling over his death has now been made due to the condition of his remains.
A spokesperson for the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department told People the “undetermined” ruling was common in such cases.
No other factors in his death were found during the coroner’s investigation.
The six-month search for Julian was so extensive it involved the use of drones and helicopters after bad weather conditions hit San Bernardino in February, which hampered the efforts of ground crews
Warnings of “extreme alpine conditions” had left areas covered in nearly 10ft of snow, which delayed the search.
In June, around a week before Sands’ body was found by hikers, San Bernardino police said volunteer searchers had spent more than 500 hours searching for the actor.
Julian’s death came despite him being an experienced hiker.
His last UK interview published in the Radio Times featured him speaking of feeling “chilled” by the discovery of human remains while climbing.
He said: “Pals I used to climb with have stopped going to the mountains. If you don’t really have the desire, the focus for climbing a route, if you’re not absolutely committed, it becomes much more dangerous.
“I’ve found spooky things on mountains. When you know you’re in a place where many people have lost their lives, whether it be on the Eiger or in the Andes.
“You may be confronted with human remains and that can be chilling.”
