Johnny Roop, 20, a Virginia Tech student who was reported missing on Friday, is believed by investigators to have left the area alone, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday. There is.
In an update on the missing person, the sheriff’s office said that based on interviews with friends and family and surveillance video, it believed that “Mr. Roop’s actions on Friday were not consistent with a normal pattern of behavior.” said. Authorities believe he left the Montgomery County area unaccompanied.
Investigators now believe he was likely traveling alone toward southwestern Virginia or Tennessee.
Deputies “have no information that would lead us to believe he is in immediate danger,” but will continue to follow leads and contact Roop to ensure his safety, authorities said. Ta.
Roop was last seen at an apartment complex in Merrimack, Montgomery County, Virginia, according to a Virginia Tech news release. His apartment complex is on Canyon Ridge Road, 7.2 miles from the university’s campus in Blacksburg, a college city about 320 miles west of Richmond.
Roop’s cell phone rang at 4:26 p.m. at a shopping mall about two miles south of her apartment. This was just over 30 minutes before the test was scheduled to begin at his parents’ home in Abingdon, about 160 miles west of the mall.
The sheriff’s office said Tuesday that Loop was seen on surveillance camera footage for about an hour before his cellphone rang in the town of Christiansburg, about five miles south of the mall.
“We’re asking the entire VT community to help us find Johnny and share any information they have,” said Mark Ouchalski, vice president of communications and marketing at Virginia Tech. told USA TODAY via email.
“Any questions regarding the incident itself should go to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department. They are the lead agency, but we are cooperating as best we can,” Owcharski said.
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At the time of his disappearance, Roop was driving a black 2018 Toyota Camry with Virginia license plate number TXW6643 and a Virginia Tech flag sticker on the rear window, the university said. It is said that he was doing so.
The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office is asking anyone with information or who saw the vehicle to contact them at 540-382-4343.
Sheriff’s Office Capt. Brian Wright said in an email to USA TODAY Tuesday morning that deputies are actively working and following leads, but declined to comment further.