Mill Valley Man Found Dead After Plunging 350 Feet Down Marin Cliff

A Mill Valley man was found dead in a car that fell hundreds of feet down an embankment near town, police and coroner's officials report.

According to the Marin County coroner's office, 58-year-old Bijan Madjlessi was identified through fingerprint analysis.  He had been reported missing two days ago.

The vehicle Madjlessi was found in was reported down the embankment shortly after 1 p.m. Tuesday, near a portion of State Route 1, north of Panoramic Highway, according to a CHP spokesman.

According to the California Highway Patrol, the vehicle was found in "extensive vegetation growth" with help from the sheriff's office, fire department and a CHP helicopter.

"A single vehicle, still unknown what type at this time, was located approximately 350 feet down an embankment off of the west side of the roadway and was not immediately accessible to personnel on foot," California Highway Patrol Officer Andrew Barclay said in an emailed news release Tuesday evening.  "Fire/rescue personnel utilized ropes and harnesses to scale down the side of the hill where they located a deceased individual inside of the vehicle."

Because of the remote and difficult location, "... crews had to lower clearing tools before either the body or the vehicle could be removed," Barclay said.  

That meant that a stretch of SR-1, between Panoramic Highway in Mill Valley and Stinson Beach, was closed at approximately 1 p.m. for more than eight hours.  Residents who live in the area were being escorted around the closure, the CHP said.

The CHP along with U.S. Park Police and the Marin County Sheriff's Office is investigating the incident.


— Bay City News Service contributed to this report.