A man who lives at the West Hills home searched in connection with the disappearance of Gavin Smith said Thursday he had never met the missing 20th Century Fox executive, reports the Los Angeles Times.
According to the Times, John Creech lives at the home along with his wife, Chandrika Creech, who is listed in public records as the property owner. Chandrika Creech reportedly met Smith in therapy, according to a source familiar with the case who did not want to be named because the investigation is ongoing, said the Times.
Detectives maintain that their probe of Smith's disappearance is a missing person investigation and that there are few clues in the case, said the report.
A SWAT team on June 8.
The cover pages of a sealed search warrant affidavit that referenced the address of the home, signed by a Los Angeles Superior Court judge on May 21, said detectives had probable cause that an unspecified felony had been committed at the residence, according to the Times.
Investigators left the home, located in the 8600 block of Santa Susana Place, with boxes, a computer and a black Audi SUV, but no arrests were made, said the report.
When asked Thursday why his home was searched earlier this month, John Creech told the LA Times, "I would love to tell you but I can't. I am told I cannot make any comments."
He added that he has "never met" Smith, said the report.
John Creech made the statements to Times reporters at Los Angeles County Superior Court, where he was scheduled to be sentenced on a single count of selling and transporting drugs, said the newspaper. Instead, Judge Clifford Klein ordered that Creech remain in custody without bail pending a new sentencing date of July 26, said the Times.
He faces up to 10 years in state prison, the Times reports.
Authorities have not divulged how the Creeches relate to the Smith case, said the report.
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The 57-year-old Smith last was seen May 1 in the Ventura County community of Oak Park. He was driving a 2000 black Mercedes-Benz 420 E with tinted windows, a roof rack and California license 6EKT044.
Smith is white, about 6 feet 6 inches tall and has graying blond hair and green eyes.
Smith has a goatee, a roughly 4-inch scar on his right inner wrist and a 5-inch scar on one of his calves, according to the sheriff's detectives.
In 1975, Smith was a member of legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden's last national championship team.
Smith's three sons have searched along canyon roads for their father's car to no avail.
Smith, who lives in West Hills, is a long-time Fox distribution executive who worked in Calabasas. He was last seen driving away from a friend's home in the 500 block of Kellwood Court, where he had been staying.
Smith's family has set up a website -- findgavinsmith.com.
His son, Evan Smith, is a forward on the USC basketball team and has turned to Twitter in an attempt to find his father.
Anyone with more information as to his whereabouts was asked to call detectives at 323-890-5500, or Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS. Anonymous tips can be submitted to http://lacrimestopers.org.
