THE heartbroken wife of a father-of-two has revealed the alarming detail that led her to call police immediately after he vanished from their home.
Colby Richards, 31, didn't close the back gate to their Montgomery County, Texas, property when he walked into the pitch-black woods in the early hours of Friday, May 26, family said.
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Speaking exclusively to The U.S. Sun, Colby's cousin Allison Fox said that this behavior is very abnormal for the father, who would normally make sure the gate was closed to protect his kids and dogs.
"[Colby's wife] knew at that point something was wrong," said Fox, who is acting as a representative for the family.
"It's a really big mystery. There's not a lot of definites or clues to go from."
Colby was a beloved baseball coach who worked with promising young players in his community and he'd just gotten a new job at an engineering firm before he vanished.
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Before getting ready for work on Friday, his wife Callie said that he left their home to go for a walk without his phone or keys.
Colby, who was never active on social media, would often leave the house without any electronics to meditate but this time was different, Fox told The U.S. Sun.
Callie first went to other rooms in their home to see if he had decided to sleep on a couch.
When she saw no sign of her husband, she walked outside to find the gate wide open and then phoned the police.
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Authorities walked the trails behind their home and discovered a water bottle on the ground that belonged to Colby but have found no other evidence about where he might be.
"I would say that it's atypical for him to leave and not say, 'Hey I'm gonna go for a walk,'" Fox said. "Especially given that he was supposed to go to work that morning."
According to Callie, nothing noteworthy had happened to the family which may have caused him to act out of character, Fox said.
"She's just as surprised as the rest of us," the heartbroken cousin said.
"He just kind of walked out and didn't say anything."
SEARCH LAUNCHED
Fox said that multiple agencies have combined their efforts with volunteers helping to search high and low for Colby.
On Tuesday, officials asked volunteers to avoid a specific area while they brought search dogs to clear it.
Locals have used horses, cars, and all-terrain vehicles to search the county located just north of Houston.
"We're trying to exhaust any and all possibilities to search in order to find him," his cousin said.
Fox has championed a Facebook page dedicated to updating the community on the status of search efforts.
She slammed online sleuths for spreading misinformation, saying that she had to turn off comments on the page.
So-called armchair detectives have speculated that Colby may have run away from his family but Fox deemed the rumors ridiculous and said that his kids are his world.
"It doesn't make any sense whatsoever that he would leave them like that," she said.
Fox said that her cousin could have gone a long distance as he was a dedicated runner and athlete.
However, she fears that he could have been without water for days while he avoids search parties.
She's started a GoFundMe to help support the family while Callie dedicates all her time to searching for her missing husband and caring for their kids.
The cousin thanked the community for rallying behind them in this dark time.
"I would say to Colby, if you are out there and you need to go just to clear your head, and now you're worried about coming back because of all the craziness going on trying to find you, we don't care," Fox said.
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"We just want you back because we love you and we miss you."
Those with any information on Richards' whereabouts should contact the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office at 936-760-5800 and refer to case #23A151879.
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