Southeast
Retired South Carolina Army vet whose geologist son vanished without a trace running for Congress
David Robinson upended his life after terrorists attacked America on Sept. 11, 2001, selling his trucking business to join the Army, where he served two tours in Afghanistan before suffering injuries in an IED blast.
“I joined the military when duty called to fight for our country, defend our democracy, defend our way of life,” he told Fox News Digital.
Decades later, his life changed again when his geologist son vanished without a trace from a well site in Arizona. Now he’s running for Congress with a focus on missing persons across the country.
He served as a combat engineer until he retired from the Army and moved on to open a new business in his hometown of Columbia, South Carolina, he said. But his son’s disappearance sent him to another desert, this one on the other side of the country, in search of answers.
ARMY VET SAYS NEW EVIDENCE SUGGESTS FOUL PLAY IN UNSOLVED DISAPPEARANCE OF SCIENTIST SON
Missing geologist Daniel Robinson, left, and his father, David Robinson II, are shown in this undated photo provided by the family. (David Robinson II)
“I’m sitting right here in this very seat, and I see that phone call from Arizona. My daughter called me, and I ended up in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona,” he told Fox News Digital.
“My journey from there came to a point of running [for Congress], when you get sick and tired,” he said.
He wasn’t making progress in the search for his son, he said, but he was meeting more and more families of missing Americans.
Daniel Robinson is shown in this undated photo provided by his father. (David Robinson II)
“I had families out there with missing loved ones of their own,” he said. “You learn a lot. … I went to meetings with the telecommunications [companies], talking to the senators, to you name it, law enforcement agencies. And I learned the ins and outs of things that are not being correct, the policies and the laws that are in place that actually hurt efforts to find missing Americans.”
One problem with the way cases are investigated is how phone records are approached, he said. Telecommunications companies usually ask to see a warrant before providing information such as cellphone pings, he said.
MISSING ARIZONA GEOLOGIST DANIEL ROBINSON: A FATHER’S UNENDING SEARCH FOR HIS SON, 1 YEAR LATER
David Robinson, right, is shown with Candice Cooley, whose son, Dylan Rounds, vanished from his own Utah farm and was later found to have been killed by a squatter next door. They are part of a community of parents of young Americans who went missing. (Michael Ruiz/Fox News Digital)
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“Sometimes when that happens, it’s too late,” he said. “The other problem is law enforcement cannot do it unless it’s a criminal case, or they fear that a person is in severe danger, or something’s out of order.”
In cases like his son’s, although the circumstances remain a mystery, there wasn’t a probable cause right away, he said. His wrecked Jeep wasn’t discovered until almost a month after he went missing. But his son’s phone account was under his daughter’s name, and she paid the bill.
“That’s problematic for a family,” he said.
MISSING ARIZONA GEOLOGIST: NEW DETAILS RELEASED IN DISAPPEARANCE OF DANIEL ROBINSON
He would propose legislation that makes data on an account available to the person paying the bill immediately, he said. Or at least to law enforcement upon the account owner’s request – with exceptions built in for domestic violence cases.
David Robinson, center, takes part in a panel discussion with the parents of Gabby Petito and Dylan Rounds, two other young Americans who went missing under suspicious circumstances. (Michael Ruiz/Fox News Digital)
Data retention is another issue. If police don’t get a warrant in time, crucial information might be lost, he said.
There are other, traditional issues in his campaign platform as well, ranging from education in his district to the cost of prescription drugs, abortion and climate change.
Daniel Robinson, a geologist working for an energy company in Arizona, vanished from a remote job site in June 2021.
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These images show Daniel Robinson’s crashed 2017 Jeep Renegade and Daniel Robinson in an undated photo. (Buckeye Police Department)
Buckeye police last year published more than 120 pages of investigators’ records in the case, which remains unsolved.
“There was no indication of foul play,” a detective wrote in a supplemental report, but there was also “no indication that Daniel had packed and planned a trip.”
On July 19, 2021, a rancher located Robinson’s 2017 Jeep Renegade battered and rolled onto its passenger side in a ravine. The vehicle had front-end impact damage, a broken driver’s side window and a missing piece of its roof. It was still in drive. There was no blood inside.
Police found clothes, Robinson’s phone and work computer inside. His wallet had no cash inside. But there was no sign of the missing geologist.
Daniel Robinson is shown in this undated photo provided by his father. (David Robinson II)
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Robinson faces an uphill battle, however. He is running as a Democrat in a district that has consistently elected a Republican to Congress since 1965.
The seat is currently held by Rep. Joe Wilson, a fellow Army veteran who first won the office in 2001.
Both men are running in their respective parties’ primary elections, scheduled for June 11.
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Lara Trump, President-elect Trump’s daughter-in-law, said Saturday she is removing herself from consideration for Florida Republican Marco Rubio’s seat in the U.S. Senate.
“After an incredible amount of thought, contemplation, and encouragement from so many, I have decided to remove my name from consideration for the United States Senate,” she wrote on X Saturday.
The president-elect has nominated Rubio to be secretary of state.
“I could not have been more honored to serve as RNC co-chair during the most high-stakes election of our lifetime and I’m truly humbled by the unbelievable support shown to me by the people of our country, and here in the great state of Florida,” Lara Trump added.
TRUMP SAYS HE DOESN’T EXPECT DESANTIS TO NAME DAUGHTER-IN-LAW LARA TRUMP AS RUBIO’S SENATE REPLACEMENT
Lara Trump, President-elect Trump’s daughter-in-law, said Saturday she is removing herself from consideration for Florida Republican Marco Rubio’s seat in the U.S. Senate. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
Trump, the wife of Eric Trump, the president-elect’s son, stepped down as co-chair of the Republican National Committee earlier this month.
” I have read so many of your kind messages and I cannot thank you enough,” Lara Trump said, adding she has a “big announcement that I’m excited to share in January.”
She said she remains “incredibly passionate about public service and (looks) forward to serving our country again sometime in the future. In the meantime, I wish Governor DeSantis the best of luck with this appointment.”
The president-elect had previously pressed DeSantis to name Lara as Rubio’s replacement, a source in his political orbit told Fox News Digital, but he later told reporters he didn’t necessarily expect him to select her.
The president-elect has nominated Sen. Marco Rubio to be secretary of state. (Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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“That’s his choice,” the president-elect added.
Rubio’s senate replacement will be appointed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and will serve the remaining two years of Rubio’s term.
In 2026, the seat will be open for a full six-year term.
Lara Trump is married to President-elect Trump’s son, Eric Trump. (Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Lara Trump had previously said she was “seriously considering” the position, although she wasn’t sure it was right for her.
DeSantis previously said he would make an appointment by early January.
Lara Trump did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
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Southeast
Florida driver hits student with her truck, covers license plate before fleeing, deputies say
A Florida woman was arrested after she allegedly struck a teenager who was crossing the road with her truck, covered her license plate and sped off.
Sarah Wright, 37, was arrested Thursday and charged with leaving the scene of a crash with injuries and driving with a suspended license.
The crash happened shortly before 4 p.m. at the intersection of Gage Avenue and Noah Street in Deltona, Florida, according to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office.
The victim, a 16-year-old boy, was riding his scooter home from Pine Ridge High School when he was struck by a black Chevrolet Silverado as he was using the crosswalk, the sheriff’s office said.
FLORIDA MAN BERATED, PHYSICALLY ABUSED CHILD FOR NEARLY 30 MINUTES OVER MISSING COUCH CUSHION: DEPUTIES
Sarah Wright, 37, is facing charges of leaving the scene of a crash with injuries and driving with a suspended license. (Flagler County Jail)
The teenager fell to the ground, resulting in a serious laceration to the back of his head as well as an arm injury, but he remained alert and conscious after the incident.
A witness reported that she was checking her mailbox nearby when she heard the crash. She told investigators that the suspect, later identified as Wright, exited her truck after the crash and checked on the boy before she went back to her vehicle and covered her license plate with paper and tape.
But the witness still managed to see the first character of her tag. A neighborhood Ring camera also captured the truck fleeing the scene.
A witness managed to see the first character on the truck’s tag and a neighborhood Ring camera captured the vehicle fleeing the scene. (Volusia County Sheriff’s Office)
The victim and the witness were also able to provide a detailed description of the suspect.
Officials were then able to locate a suspect vehicle captured on a nearby License Plate Reader camera within minutes.
Wright was found in Flagler County and taken into custody with assistance from Florida Highway Patrol and the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
FLORIDA SHERIFF MOURNS ‘REALLY GREAT’ DEPUTY KILLED DURING TRAFFIC STOP; SUSPECT LATER KILLED
Sarah Wright was booked into the Flagler County Jail on a $3,500 bond. (iStock)
She was booked into the Flagler County Jail on a $3,500 bond.
The teenage victim required staples for the laceration and treatment for his arm injury, but he is expected to make a full recovery.
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A child was hospitalized on Saturday after being hit by a drone that was part of an Orlando, Florida holiday drone show.
According to the Orlando Fire Department, a 7-year-old boy was transported to the hospital because of injuries sustained from the falling drones, FOX 35 in Orlando reported.
In a video posted online by X user MosquitoCoFl, hundreds of drones being used as part of an aerial light show appeared to be flying into position before several started falling from the sky before slamming to the ground.
A man could be heard saying to children nearby, “Oh no! I don’t believe they’re supposed to be falling.”
MYSTERY DRONES COULD BE IDENTIFIED FASTER USING NEW DETECTION TOOL, BUT FAA LACKS RESOURCES
Several drones malfunctioned during a drone show in Orlando, Florida on Saturday, sending the unmanned aerial objects crashing to the ground. (Credit – X/MosquitoCoFL)
Geese also appear on the water, flapping their wings to try and get out of the way of the chaotic scene.
City officials told the station the holiday drone show was permitted by the FAA.
Still, after one drone show went wrong, the city chose to cancel the second that night at 8 p.m. due to “technical difficulties.”
DRONES SPOTTED ACROSS NORTHEAST LIKELY COMING FROM ‘INSIDE THE US,’ MILITARY EXPERT SAYS
Several drones malfunctioned during a drone show in Orlando, Florida on Saturday, sending the unmanned aerial objects crashing to the ground. (Credit – X/MosquitoCoFL)
The FAA told Fox News Digital it will investigate the cause of the drone show malfunction.
“Several small drones collided and fell into a crowd during a holiday drone show over [Eola] Lake in Orlando, Florida,” the FAA said. “The incident occurred around 6:45 p.m. local time on Saturday, December 21.”
According to the agency, drone arrays and light shows are subject to FAA regulations and typically require a waiver to a regulation that prohibits operating more than one drone at a time.
For each drone show application, the FAA looks at things like the software controlling the drones, procedures for setting up safe and restricted areas to keep people a safe distance from the show, procedures if drones fail, and procedures for when an aircraft gets too close to the show.
DRONE MYSTERY: NEW JERSEY HOMEOWNERS THREATEN TO TAKE MATTERS INTO THEIR OWN HANDS IF GOVERNMENT DOESN’T ACT
Several drones malfunctioned during a drone show in Orlando, Florida on Saturday, sending the unmanned aerial objects crashing to the ground. (Credit – X/MosquitoCoFL)
Additionally, the FAA reviews how the operator will keep the drones inside a confined area using Geofencing, and whether the operator has an adequate number of people to run the show.
For the second year, the City of Orlando used Sky Elements Drones as its vendor to operate the drones, the station reported.
Sky Elements Drones did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment on the matter.
In a statement to Fox 35, the vendor said, “Sky Elements Drones wants to extend our sincere hope for a full and speedy recovery to those impacted at our Lake Eola show in Orlando on Saturday, Dec. 21.
“The well-being of our audience is our utmost priority, and we regret any distress or inconvenience caused,” the company continued. “We are diligently working with the FAA and City of Orlando officials to determine the cause and are committed to establishing a clear picture of what transpired. Millions of people see our shows annually, and we are committed to maintaining the highest safety regulations set forth by the FAA.”
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