Just under two weeks after the sudden disappearance of a distinguished Virginia high school coach, amidst an unsettling child pornography investigation, the U.S. Marshals Service has stepped up efforts by offering a reward of up to $5,000 for any information that could lead to his capture.
The federal authorities have issued a warning that Travis L. Turner, aged 46, “may be armed.” They are urging the public to proceed with caution if they encounter him. According to the U.S. Marshals Service, Turner was last spotted entering a wooded area behind his home in Appalachia on November 20, carrying a firearm.
In the preceding week, law enforcement secured 10 warrants charging Turner with five counts of possessing child pornography and five counts of using a computer to solicit a minor. This legal action followed intense investigations into his activities.
The first reports of Turner’s disappearance came as officers from the Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation’s Wytheville Field Office were on their way to his Appalachia residence. They intended to discuss the ongoing investigation with him on November 21. It is notable that the authorities had visited his home a day earlier, intending only to have a conversation and not to detain him, according to police statements.
At the time of his disappearance, Turner was guiding the Union High School football team through an undefeated season, marking a high point in his coaching career. His sudden departure from his family home in Appalachia, Virginia, on Friday, November 21, 2025, left the community in shock.
“The Virginia State Police, with the collaboration of the FBI and U.S. Marshals Service, continues to search for Turner,” stated VSP spokesperson Robin Lawson in a communication to Fox News Digital.
The USMS announced the reward on Monday. Turner was last seen walking into a “heavily wooded and mountainous area” on Nov. 20, Adrian Collins, an attorney for the coach’s family, said in a statement obtained by WCYB.
“The last known contact the family had with Travis occurred on or about Thursday, Nov. 20, after he left his residence to walk in the woods with a firearm,” the statement reads, clarifying that no warrants for his arrest had been made prior to his disappearance.
When Turner failed to return home later that evening, his wife reportedly notified local law enforcement of her husband’s disappearance. However, authorities told her that she had to wait 24 hours to file a missing-person report, which she submitted the next day, according to the statement.
Virginia State Police have launched a search for Union High football coach Travis Turner, whose disappearance has stunned the Big Stone Gap community. (Virginia State Police)
In addition to authorities using K-9 units, drones and foot patrols to locate Turner, his family has reportedly launched their own search for the missing coach and are fully cooperating with authorities, according to the attorney’s statement.
The update comes on the heels of Turner’s wife, Leslie Caudill Turner – who shares three children with the coach – deleting her social media profiles over the weekend, according to The New York Post.
She previously used the accounts to celebrate the decorated football coach’s undefeated season – along with sharing photos of family and friends, along with countless images of her children on the sports fields.
Authorities announced that they have obtained 10 warrants to charge Travis Turner with five counts of possession of child pornography and five counts of using a computer to solicit a minor. Turner is employed as a football coach at Union High School in Wise County, Virginia. (Facebook/Leslie Caudill Turner)
The deletion follows Turner’s staff profile page being removed from Union High School’s website shortly after the investigation was announced, ABC 7 reported.
In a previous statement, a spokesperson for Wise County Public Schools confirmed that a staff member employed by the district had been placed on administrative leave pending review of an external allegation. Days later, the district released an updated statement to acknowledge that charges have since been filed against the staff member in question, but failed to identify Turner by name.
“The individual remains on leave and is not permitted on school property or to have contact with students,” Superintendent Mike Goforth said. “The division will continue to cooperate with law enforcement as this process moves forward. Because this is an active legal matter involving personnel, the division cannot comment further.”
Turner’s family attorney, the VSP and USMS did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Turner was last seen wearing a gray sweatshirt, sweatpants and glasses, according to Virginia’s missing person database. Tips can be reported to 911, Virginia State Police or the USMS tip line at 1-877-WANTED2 or online usmarshals.gov/tips.
