A Texas father named Colby Richards has been missing since the morning of May 26 after he left his home and did not return.
Colby’s wife Callie noticed that something was amiss when her husband awoke at 5 am and did not return to the bedroom to get ready for work. According to her cousin, who spoke with Fox News Digital, this kind of behavior was far from the norm for Richards and raised alarm bells in Callie’s head. Then things got strange. According to cousin Allison Fox, the family backyard gate was open, something that should never be the case since the couple has dogs and young children.
She said that Callie “noticed that the back gate was open, which was atypical. He never leaves the house that way, and they would never leave the gate open anyway because they have a dog and two small children.”
Immediately following that discovery, Callie trusted her gut and called the police to report that something was wrong. According to Allison Fox, authorities found more evidence of Colby’s whereabouts when they “found a water bottle of his near the trailhead in the wooded area with trails and stuff behind where they live.”
In another strange twist of events, Colby did not have his phone or wallet with him when he exited the house in the morning. Yet another uncharacteristic action from the 31-year-old father. Fox spoke about the ongoing search efforts that have been tirelessly looking for Colby, but that have not yet found him.
She said, “We’ve had everything from people on foot, thermal drones, regular visual drones, people on ATVs, people on horseback and people driving around in their cars checking to see if there are security cameras or doorbell cameras that might have footage.”
Authorities and family and friends are also trying to spread the word about the missing person, in the hope that someone nearby has seen or heard from Colby. Any tips about his whereabouts would be a welcomed relief for Callie Richards. Fox said that they have “been trying to get the word out to everybody that if they see him, or they see anything out of the ordinary,” to call the police.
Allison Fox also created a GoFundMe page titled “Help us find Colby Richards” to help the family fund ongoing search and rescue efforts. In a description of what the donations will fund, Fox wrote, “We have had many people from far away who have requested a way to financially help Colby and Callie through this tough time. The Richards are wonderful people with two young children. They will need help for missed pay during the search as Callie hasn’t been able to work. We will also use funds to buy supplies as needed for search volunteers.”
Featured image credit: GoFundMe
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