BIG STONE GAP, Va. — A Virginia high school football coach who went missing last week is wanted for possession of child pornography, authorities announced Tuesday.
Travis Turner, 46, of Appalachia, Va., has been missing since Nov. 20 and is considered a fugitive, ABC News reports. He is wanted on 10 charges, including five counts of possession of child pornography and five counts of using a computer to solicit a minor. Police said additional charges are pending.
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Turner is head football coach and a physical education teacher at Union High School. State police special agents from the Bureau of Criminal Investigation Wytheville Field Office were on their way to Turner’s house on Thursday as part of an investigation when they were informed he was no longer there. Since his disappearance, police have deployed drones, K-9 units, and rescue teams.
Wise County Public Schools confirmed a staff member had been placed on paid administrative leave pending review of an external allegation.
“The individual remains on leave and is not permitted on school property or to have contact with students,” the district wrote in a statement. “The division will continue to cooperate with law enforcement as this process moves forward.”
Turner’s disappearance came two days before his undefeated team was set to compete in a playoff game.
Anyone with information on Turner’s whereabouts is asked to contact Virginia State Police Division 4 at 276-484-9483 or email [email protected]. Tips can be made anonymously. Turner was last seen wearing a gray sweatshirt and sweatpants.
This is the second time in two years that a staff member at Union High School was accused of sex-related crimes, according to The New York Times. In Dec. 2023, Timothy Meador, a science teacher and assistant football and baseball coach at the school, pleaded guilty to two felony charges of taking indecent liberties with a child by a person in custodial or supervisory relationship.
