TECUMSEH, OK — Family members of a Tecumseh man are searching for answers after he failed to show up for a work trip to Oklahoma City more than a month ago and has not been heard from since. The Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the disappearance of 47-year-old Troy Tolton.
Investigators found Tolton’s truck abandoned in a rural area this week, adding to the family’s concerns. Relatives say his fiancé was the last person to see him on July 31. Since then, they say the silence has been unlike him and has left them fearing the worst.
Truck found abandoned near southwest 104th Street and Peebly Road
Deputies now have Tolton’s truck as evidence after it was discovered near southwest 104th Street and Peebly Road. Family members say the vehicle was found in a rural area, far from the normal path they expected him to take for work and travel.
Carmen Tolton said her father would not have simply left the truck behind. She said he had many people he could have called if the vehicle had broken down. For the family, the discovery raises more questions than answers and makes it harder to believe he left on his own.
Family says the last contact came on July 31
According to Tolton’s family, his fiancé was the last person to see him before he disappeared. Carmen Tolton said his mother first learned something was wrong when Tolton did not arrive for a moving job in Oklahoma City. A friend later called when he still had not appeared.
That is when the family says concern turned into alarm. They say Tolton stopped answering calls and messages, which led them to contact police and file a missing person’s report. Carmen Tolton said the lack of contact stood out because it was not normal behavior for her father.
Questions grow around what happened at the Tecumseh home
Relatives say they are especially troubled by what happened after Tolton disappeared. Emma Eddings said Tolton left clothing and one of his phones behind, but the items were later given away. Carmen Tolton also said her father’s fiancé told the family she did not know whether he planned to return home.
Carmen Tolton said that account has changed over time, which is part of why the family believes someone knows more than they are saying. They have not accused anyone of a crime publicly, but they are urging anyone with information to speak up and help detectives narrow the timeline.
Personal items and jewelry add to the family’s concern
The family says more than the missing man and abandoned truck are causing alarm. Carmen Tolton said her father’s fiancé also gave away his clothes and sold expensive jewelry that had belonged to him after his grandfather died. To relatives, those details make the disappearance seem even more suspicious.
They say Tolton was close to his family and had reasons to stay connected with them. That is why, they say, the sudden break in communication has been so unsettling. The family has traveled from Arizona to look for him and to keep pressure on the search.
How detectives and relatives are trying to move the case forward
The Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s Office continues to investigate Tolton’s disappearance. At this point, the truck is being held as evidence, and investigators have not publicly said what may have happened to him or when he might have disappeared.
Carmen Tolton said the family wants anyone with information to reach out, even if they do not want to call police directly. She asked people to contact her, her aunt, her grandmother or one of her sisters so the family can keep searching for Troy Tolton and, they hope, bring him home safe.
Anyone with information about Tolton’s disappearance can call Pottawatomie County Central Dispatch at (405) 273-1727.
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