A Virginia high school football coach, who mysteriously disappeared last week during an undefeated season, is being investigated for child pornography possession and soliciting a minor, according to law enforcement.
Travis Turner, a physical education teacher and head football coach at Union High School in Big Stone Gap, vanished Thursday as police officers were headed to his home as part of an investigation.
The 46-year-old married father is now considered a fugitive, Virginia State Police said in an update Tuesday. Turner is wanted on five counts of child pornography and five counts of using a computer to solicit a minor.
Police are actively searching for Turner using search and rescue teams, drones and K-9s. Additional charges are pending, and the investigation remains ongoing, authorities added.
Turner, the head coach of the Union High School Bears, went missing as his team was preparing for a playoff game. Despite his absence, the team remained triumphant, now with an undefeated 12-0 season. Turner has been head coach at the public high school since 2011.
In a since-deleted Facebook post, Turner’s wife, Leslie Turner, wrote that he was “missing and that’s all we know,” KTVU reported.
Authorities arrived at Turner’s home in Appalachia, a town of less than 2,000 people, as “part of the early stages of an investigation,” not to arrest him, state police said.
However, as police were headed to the residence November 20, they were told that he had left that location.
Turner was last seen wearing a gray sweatshirt, gray sweatpants and glasses, authorities said. He is described as being 6’3” and weighing 260 pounds.
Virginia State Police and the Bureau of Criminal Investigation are actively searching for Turner.
