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Rumors of allegations against the Virginia high school football coach who disappeared just days before being slapped with child pornography charges had been circulating for years before authorities launched an investigation, according to reports.
Authorities announced Tuesday that they have obtained 10 warrants to charge Travis L. Turner, 46, with five counts of possession of child pornography and five counts of using a computer to solicit a minor.
The investigation into Turner remains ongoing, with authorities adding that additional charges are pending.
Turner, who vanished last week, is considered a fugitive, according to the Virginia State Police (VSP).
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Union High School head football coach Travis Turner has been reported missing, according to the Virginia State Police. (Leslie Turner/Facebook)
Turner was initially reported missing Friday, Nov. 21, one day after authorities visited his Appalachia, Virginia, home.
Special agents with the VSP Bureau of Criminal Investigation’s Wytheville Field Office were traveling to Turner’s home on Friday when they learned, while en route, that he was unaccounted for. The authorities were planning to only speak with Turner about an investigation, and had been instructed to not make an arrest.
“VSP’s main priority is locating Turner safely,” authorities said in a statement.
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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)
While the announcement of Turner’s charges, and subsequent disappearance, rocked the Union High School community, some local residents have reportedly taken to social media to express their lack of surprise at the news.
“Our community is hurting right now,” one former Union High student wrote, according to The New York Post. “Many of us grew up with Travis Turner as a coach, a mentor, or a familiar face at school events.”
“What has recently happened is devastating and has broke the trust we had in someone who held a position of responsibility and influence,” the former student reportedly added.
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Union High School head football coach Travis Turner, who has been reported missing, in an undated photo released by the Virginia State Police. (Virginia State Police)
However, other posts scattered across social media suggest “a lot of people knew” about the allegations for years, The Post reported.
Locals also reportedly added that there were “rumors” throughout the community of “others” being involved in the alleged crimes.
The allegations are not the first to rock the Union High School community.
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In 2023, Timothy Lee Meador, a teacher and coach at the same school, pleaded guilty to two charges of indecent liberties with a child, ABC 7 reported. Meador served one year and three months in prison as a result of the charges, according to the outlet.
While details regarding which sport Meador coached remain unclear, both Meador and Turner worked at the high school at the same time together, The Post reported.
In light of the allegations, Turner’s wife, Leslie Caudill Turner, has vehemently denied the accusations after her husband was charged, telling The Daily Mail that “none of that is true.”
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“He’s a good dad and a good husband, and we want him home. That’s it,” she said. “I don’t know anything. I don’t know anything. I’m sorry.”
Wise County Public Schools previously confirmed that a staff member employed by the district had been placed on administrative leave pending review of an external allegation. However, the statement did not identify the staff member involved.
“A staff member has been placed on administrative leave with pay while an external agency reviews an allegation that was reported to the division,” Superintendent Mike Goforth said in a statement at the time. “This is standard procedure and is not a determination of wrongdoing.”
In an updated statement, the school district acknowledged that law enforcement has since filed charges against the staff member who was already placed on leave.
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“The individual remains on leave and is not permitted on school property or to have contact with students,” 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 hails from a long-established football family embedded in the community. His late father, Tom Turner, also worked as a coach at Appalachia High School and led his teams to five state championships during his 26-year career before his death in 2006.