Sexually Violent Predator Found Dead In San Diego After Weeks-Long Search

SAN DIEGO, CA — A sexually violent predator who disappeared from his Rancho Bernardo workplace last month has been found dead in San Diego, authorities announced Tuesday.

Merle Wakefield, 69, was found dead Monday in a riverbed near the 4800 block of Fairmount Avenue, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Office.

San Diego police responded to a report of a body in the riverbed shortly after 9:30 a.m. The San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office later identified the body as Wakefield.

An autopsy will be conducted to determine the cause and manner of his death, authorities said. His next of kin has been notified.

Wakefield had been missing since Sept. 25, when he removed his GPS monitoring device while working in the 16000 block of Via Esprillo in Rancho Bernardo.

Liberty Healthcare, which supervised Wakefield as part of California's Conditional Release Program, responded to his workplace after receiving a tampering alert and found his GPS device and cellphone, but Wakefield was gone.

The company notified the sheriff's office and San Diego Police Department, prompting a region-wide search.

Wakefield was convicted in 1980 and 1991 of lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14 and rape by force, according to the sheriff's office. He had been on conditional release since November 2024.

The sheriff's office said the investigation remains active and no additional details will be released at this time.

Also see:

• Sexually Violent Predator Wanted After Removing GPS Monitor In San Diego
• GPS Device, Cellphone Found As Search Continues For Sexually Violent Predator