The family of missing high school football coach Travis Turner has agreed to home searches with authorities in the investigation into his disappearance, according to their attorney.
“Their homes and properties have been searched multiple times, with their consent,” attorney Adrian Collins said in a statement on behalf of the Turner family to Us Weekly on Wednesday, December 3.
Collins added that the family “continues to cooperate with law enforcement efforts to locate Travis.”
Turner, 46, went missing on November 20, last seen by members of his family walking into the woods near his home while carrying a firearm.
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Days after his disappearance, Turner, the head football coach at Union High School in Stone Gap, Virginia, was charged with five counts of child pornography and five counts of using a computer to solicit a minor.
Travis has been married to his wife, Leslie Caudill Turner, since 2001 and the couple share three children: sons Bailey, 25, and Grayden, 21, and daughter Brynlee, 11.
“If Travis has the ability and is able to respond to his family’s wishes; your wife and children are in distress,” the family’s statement said. “Leslie pleads for you to come home and face the allegations by defending yourself in a court of law. Don’t leave your family to fight this battle without you. They love and miss you. They want you to know they are your support.”
Leslie called authorities to report that Travis was missing on November 21, and her fears were “heightened” when she realized her husband had left home without his wallet, keys, contacts, glasses and daily medications.
“Criminal charges were not obtained against Travis until days after he failed to return home,” the statement explained. “He was not a fugitive nor wanted by law enforcement at the time he went missing. His wife was not helping him escape, she was asking for help to find him.”
The United States Marshals Service joined the search for Travis on Monday, December 1, linking up with Virginia State Police to execute their efforts.
A $5,000 reward for information about Travis’ location was also issued by the Marshals on Monday.
“The search remains active and ongoing with the assistance of the US Marshals Service and FBI,” a spokesperson for the Virginia State Police told Us on December 3. “We are still asking for the public’s assistance in providing any information that may lead to Turner’s whereabouts.”
Authorities have utilized drones, K-9 units and a helicopter in their search for Travis, which has largely focused on the dense wooded area near his home.
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Amid his disappearance, the undefeated Union High football team has made a run to the state semifinals.
Union will play Glenvar High School in the Virginia High School League Class 2 semifinals on Saturday, December 6.
After Union’s victory over rival Ridgeview High School on Saturday, November 29, Travis’ oldest son Bailey, a member of the Union High coaching staff, called the win “bittersweet,” according to the Daily Mail.
Bailey also said he “appreciated the support” from the community as his father remained missing.
