Missing CDC Employee Timothy Cunningham Reportedly Made Strange Comment Before Disappearance

An employee at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) who has been missing for almost two weeks may have made a strange comment just before his disappearance. Timothy Cunningham’s next-door neighbor said he told her husband something odd that very day.

“He told my husband to tell his wife—me—to erase his cellphone number from my cellphone,” Viviana Tory told CBS News.

Cunningham, 35, works in the United States Public Health Service as a commander, working on teams involved in the Ebola and Zika crises. Cunningham left work at the CDC offices in Atlanta early February 12 because he was feeling ill. He was officially reported missing February 14. Family, friends and authorities have since been searching for the Harvard- and Morehouse College–trained epidemiologist.

“Tim had been in communication with us extensively on Sunday [February 11], and I pinpoint Sunday because there were some exchanges via phone as well as text that alerted me to be concerned about our son,” his father, Terrell Cunningham, told NBC News.

After Cunningham stopped responding to calls and texts, his parents arrived at his home in Atlanta’s Bolton neighborhood on February 14. Using a spare key, they discovered Cunningham had left behind his driver’s license, phone and—most suspiciously—his dog

“Tim never leaves Beau unattended,” his father told NBC. “He just doesn’t do it.”

Since Cunningham’s disappearance, investigators have scoured the woods surrounding his home while family and friends have assisted in the search and tried to spread the word about his disappearance. Police said they do not suspect foul play in Cunningham’s disappearance but noted that they would explore all possible options.

Crime Stoppers of Greater Atlanta, in conjunction with Cunningham’s family, has offered a $10,000 reward for any information that leads to a resolution or arrest in the case. A GoFundMe account, created on behalf of Cunningham’s father to offer a reward to locate his son, had a $10,000 goal but raised more than $22,000 in just seven days.

Anyone with information about Cunningham is asked to call 911 or the Atlanta Police Homicide/Adult Missing Persons Unit at 404-546-4235.

CDC employee Timothy Cunningham has been missing for almost two weeks. GoFundMe