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Tulsa County Sheriff's Office asks for help finding missing Owasso man

Timothy Vanmatre
Timothy Vanmatre's car
Timothy Vanmatre
Posted at 10:53 AM, Mar 21, 2023
and last updated 2023-03-21 19:14:25-04

TULSA, Okla. — The Tulsa County Sheriff's Office is asking for the public's help in finding a man from Owasso who disappeared over the weekend.

57-year-old Timothy Vanmatre was reported missing on Saturday evening. His girlfriend found his Subaru about an hour later.

"I'm very concerned that something bad happened to him," said Emily Smith, Vanmatre's daughter.

Timothy Vanmatre's car

Detectives said Vanmatre is a tri-athlete and is known to work out near 66th Street North and Mingo area, where his car was found.

"He has helped me through the toughest times of my life and this definitely supersedes all of that and I don't know how to navigate this without him," said Smith.

Emily Smith, Vanmatre's daughter, said she got a call Saturday from her dad's girlfriend who said they got into a small disagreement and he went to cool off. His girlfriend found his car abandoned near 66th Street North and Mingo about an hour after he left the house.

He didn't have his phone or wallet with him.

"Just an immediate sinking feeling in my stomach when it was getting close to 20 degrees outside and just knowing that he was out there alone and not knowing if he was safe or not it was terrifying," said Smith.

Deputies spent most of the day Sunday searching the area where the car was found.

"Yeah, we're obviously concerned that's why we're trying to get ahead of this while we can," said Corporal Christoper Garrison with the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office.

Corporal Garrison says they brought out a K9, drone, and OHP's aircraft during their search, but they haven't located him.

Smith says her dad has missed work and several commitments.

"I can't imagine that he would leave and not say anything," said Smith. "That's extremely out of character for him."

Right now, investigators don't suspect foul play but they say they want him found.

"The Sheriff's Office isn't going to sit on our hands basically," said Corporal Garrison. "We're going to try to get ahead of the game and get the ball rolling and do some investigating to see if we can find a good starting point."

Corporal Garrison says they've done a hand-full of interviews but don't have any witnesses who saw him in the north Tulsa county area.

Vanmatre is 5' 10" and weighs 175 pounds. He was last sen wearing blue jeans, a green jacket and tennis shoes.

Timothy Vanmatre

Anyone with information or who may have seen who left Vanmatre’s vehicle near 66th Street North and Mingo between 5 pm and 6 pm on Saturday is asked to call TCSO at 918-596-5600.

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