A car that belonged to a man missing since 2003 was found in a Nash County creek this week, the sheriff's office said.
Travis Lamont Lynch drove a white 1992 Pontiac Grand Am. He was last seen in the early morning hours of Christmas Eve 2003 when he left his girlfriend’s home on Claude Lewis Road.
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On Wednesday afternoon, someone called the sheriff's office to report a car underwater near Old Middlesex Road and Turkey Creek. When deputies pulled it out, the license plate matched Lynch's.
WRAL spoke with Nash County Sheriff Keith Stone on Friday about the discovery.
"We found that the car is really dilapidated over time," said Stone. "That moving water against that metal, everything in there deteriorates a whole lot, and it's a very acidic water, so that also adds in the decomposition of the vehicle. You can tell that it's been there for a long time."
His deputies planned to dredge the creek and begin a new series of interviews with people connected to the case.
Stone says he does not know why it took so long find the car. He says the discovery does open a new pathway in the search for answers about what happened to Lynch.
"Our interviews will be very important," Stone said. "The physical evidence -- that's going to be tough, and that's the reason we've reached out to the FBI, because they have the best forensics in the world."
Retired Nash County Sheriff's deputy Major Miste Strickland was one of the first investigators to be assigned to the case.
It hits home for her. Strickland used to be a Student Resource Officer at Southern Nash Junior High School when Lynch was a student there. Over the years, she has grown close to his family.
"Travis was a fun kid," Strickland says. "I knew him, so I want to know what happened to him.
When asked why she still remains tied to the case despite her retirement, Strickland said, "I want to bring that knowledge to the family. The car being found, wherever it leads us, now I just want it to be the truth."
The investigation into Lynch's disappearance and how his vehicle ended up in the water is ongoing, the sheriff's office said. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Nash County Sheriff’s Office at 252-459-4121.
After searching for weeks after his 2003 disappearance, the Nash County Sheriff's Office indicated that they suspected foul play.
Lynch was 5 feet 4 inches tall, weighed 180 pounds and had brown hair and brown eyes. He has a birthmark of the left side of his face near his mouth.
"Since he's been gone for so long, we're thinking maybe foul play may be involved, but [there's] no concrete evidence to say any foul play has happened," said Lt. Patrick Joyner of the Nash County Sheriff's Office said at the time.
"He never, never missed Christmas with his family. This was his first one, so we know something is wrong somewhere," said Avalean Lynch of her nephew.
Investigators interviewed his friends and family, and fliers were distributed.
"He has never done this before -- been missing any length of time. There is no past to think he's involved in anything," Joyner said.