Daniel Robinson: Investigators release new details about crash leading up to geologist's disappearance

Father of missing geologist responds to new details released by police

FOX 10 first reported on Daniel Robinson's disappearance in late June. According to Buckeye Police officials at the time, Robinson was last seen in the area of Sun Valley Parkway and Cactus Road on June 23. On Nov. 4, Buckeye Police released new details surrounding his disappearance. FOX 10's Matt Galka reports.

BUCKEYE, Ariz. - Much has been made in recent weeks about the disappearance and death of Gabby Petito. In Arizona, however, there is a desperate, ongoing search for a man who vanished while out on a job site.

Daniel Robinson (Courtesy: David Robinson)

FOX 10 first reported on Daniel Robinson's disappearance in late June. According to Buckeye Police officials at the time, Robinson was last seen in the area of Sun Valley Parkway and Cactus Road on June 23.

Robinson is a geologist who often worked at remote sites. At the time of his disappearance, police officials said Robinson was driving a blue 2017 Jeep Renegade. That vehicle was later found crashed in a ravine on July 19. The vehicle had significant damage, and some personal items of Robinson were also found inside.

According to a statement released by Buckeye Police on Nov. 3, A company processed the crash site on Sept. 28, and revisited the crash site on Oct. 14 before releasing a collision report on Oct. 18.

In a summary of the collision report issued by the company, Buckeye Police officials say the Jeep Renegate was involved in a rollover crash, and that speed increased right before impact, which could indicate an attempt to drive up the other side of the ravine.

"More than 40 ignition cycles were recorded after the crash. This could be due to driver attempts to restart the vehicle or use the electrical systems. It’s unclear how many cycles occurred during tow recovery and when investigators downloaded data," read a portion of the statement from Buckeye Police.

(Buckeye Police Department)

In late July, a human skull was found in an area south of where Robinson's vehicle was recovered, however, it was later determined that the human remains did not belong to Robinson.

"No additional human remains have been found, despite online reports claiming otherwise," police said in a statement on Sept. 16. "Other remains recovered during searches were determined to be animal bones.

On Sept. 30, Buckeye Police said they conducted more searches in the desert area where Robinson's vehicle was found. Police said they even used a robot equipped with a camera to search two mineshafts, with one of them being more than 75-feet deep.

"Investigators focused on locations where volunteer search crews reported their tracking dogs and previously alerted," police said in a statement. "Buckeye PD's follow up searches did not yield any evidence of Daniel."

On Sept. 30, Buckeye Police said they conducted more searches in the desert area where Daniel Robinson's vehicle was found. Police said the even used a robot equipped with a camera to search two mineshafts, with one of them being more than 75-feet de (Buckeye Police Department)

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Father, police officials respond

Father of missing geologist believes police are not doing enough to solve son's disappearance

Daniel Robinson was last seen on June 23, and three months following his disappearance, his father is still on the search. FOX 10's Matt Galka reports.

Three months after Robinson disappeared, his father, David Robinson, spoke with FOX 10 about his son's disappearance.

"I’m still not conceding that my son is not here anymore," said David.

David said the search for his son has garnered a lot more interest recently. He also said while there is finally some movement on his son’s case, he does not believe Buckeye Police is doing enough

"I don’t feel like they’re doing enough," said David. "When I got here, it took them three days to do the initial search for my son. That’s one day too late. A person should be looked for within that 24 to 48-hour period. Anything after that is problematic."

In November, a day after the collision report for Robinson's car was released, David said the new information still does not tell the story of what happened to his son.

"There’s not 100% proof of something," said David. "We have common sense. You can see with your eyes. You see exactly what I see. His clothes on the ground. His wallet and phone in the car."

David’s biggest issue is an 11-mile difference between crash data and the car’s odometer. Investigators say in the report it is not considered unusual

"The data shows the car went an additional 11 miles. It’s things like that that says there’s something else to that, because I really believe my son did not put that vehicle down that ravine," said David, who went on to say that cell phone ping data will tell the story of whether or not his son wandered off into the desert. That data, according to David, has yet to be retrieved.

In response to David's comments in September, Buckeye Police officials said they continue to exhaust every possible lead, and that the search remains ongoing.

"A dad’s trying to find his son, that’s the bottom line," said Buckeye Assistant Police Chief Bob Sanders. "We’ve tracked down every lead possible: the forensics, examined the phone. We retraced Daniel's whereabouts to a couple days prior to his disappearance. At this time, we have no proof or evidence anything criminal took place inside or outside the vehicle."

Buckeye police say they’re still collecting and looking into all tips they receive. Anyone with information are urged to call the department's non-emergency number at (623)349-6400.