In June of 2003, Timothy Joseph Lynch, a 44-year-old man from Newburgh, Indiana, traveled to Hawaii for a vacation. He was last seen on June 6, 2003, when he went hiking in the scenic but treacherous Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, specifically at the end of Chain of Craters Road. Lynch, who went by the nicknames Tim or T.J., was a manager at a grocery store in his hometown and was described as having a muscular build, brown thinning hair, and brown eyes.
He may have had a goatee at the time of his disappearance and had a surgical scar on his lower abdomen and an abrasion scar on his lower back. When he was last seen, he was reportedly wearing gray and silver cross-trainer athletic shoes and carrying a black shoulder bag with a water bottle inside.
A week after he was last seen, on June 13, 2003, Lynch's rental car was discovered abandoned at the entrance to the park, near the area of active lava flows along the coast. This discovery prompted an extensive search of the area by national park rangers, but no trace of Lynch was found. The day he vanished was also the day he was scheduled to fly back home to Indiana; however, his return ticket was never used. Further investigation revealed that his own car was parked at the airport in Evansville, Indiana, and most of his personal belongings had been left in his hotel room at the Royal Kona Resort.
The circumstances surrounding Timothy Lynch's disappearance remain unknown. His estranged wife filed a missing person report in Indiana after he failed to show up for work. In December 2005, she petitioned the court to have him legally declared dead. However, Lynch's father expressed his belief that his son may have either intentionally disappeared due to a difficult divorce or met with foul play. Both the Hawaii County Police Department and the Warrick County Sheriff's Department in Indiana have investigated the case, but it remains unsolved. The investigation has been complicated by the vast and rugged terrain of the national park, a place known for its dynamic and sometimes dangerous volcanic activity. The official classification of his case is listed as lost/injured missing, leaving his family and investigators without definitive answers.Last Seen: Jun 6, 2003
