DANVILLE, Va. (WFXR) — Two months after workers discovered skeletal remains in a wooded area of Danville, authorities confirmed the remains belong to Robert “Robbie” Hurt, a Pittsylvania County man who was reported missing more than two years ago.
According to the Pittsylvania County Sheriff’s Office, Hurt was reported missing on Dec. 14, 2018.
Authorities say Hurt, a father of three, left his Pittsylvania County home on Dec. 9, 2018 and was last seen at a friend’s house in Pelham, North Carolina. Investigators add that his truck was found three days later in a ditch along Goodyear Boulevard in Danville. Two days after that, Hurt was officially reported missing to the Pittsylvania County Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators from North Carolina, Danville, and Pittsylvania County followed up on tips for weeks after Hurt went missing, but all proved unsuccessful.
In November 2020, Hurt’s family offered a $2,000 reward — in addition to a Crime Stoppers reward — for information leading to his discovery.
About a month later, on Dec. 8, 2020, a crew clearing trees along a powerline right-of-way in Danville discovered human skeletal remains, police say.
The Danville Police Department says officers immediately secured the area before investigators and crime scene technicians conducted a thorough grid search through the heavily wooded area near the Danville Expressway and South Main Street the following day.
Finally, just before 5 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 11, the remains were positively identified as Hurt, according to police. Officials then notified Hurt’s family that evening.
“We recognize that the missing person’s case being closed brings the family some relief, however the Danville Police Department will continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding Hurt’s death,” the Danville Police Department said in a statement released on Friday, Feb. 12.
Capt. Richard Chivvis with the Danville Police Department told WFXR News nearly all of Hurt’s skeletal remains were recovered and there were no immediate signs of obvious injuries to them, but police are still waiting on the final report from the medical examiner’s office.
Chivvis says the Danville Police Department will be the lead investigating agency moving forward as authorities look into the circumstances surrounding Hurt’s death.
“We would like to recognize several agencies that participated in the initial search for Hurt in 2018 and the recovery of the remains. The agencies that supported this effort included Virginia State Police, Angel Search and Rescue, Danville Lifesaving Crew, Caswell County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue Tracking Institute, and Dogs-East.”
Danville Police Department
If you have any information in this case, you are asked contact the Danville Police Department at (434) 793-0000
