SEATTLE — The parents of two missing teens are in Eastern Washington Tuesday night, trying to track down their missing children.
Forrest Merculief, 17, and his girlfriend, 17-year-old Lauren Mitchell, from the north Bothell and Mill Creek areas, were last seen about 7 p.m. Sunday.
One of their parents emailed KIRO 7 Eyewitness News, desperate to find the teens.
Nathaniel Landis said his stepson may have taken off with Mitchell after his girlfriend argued with her parents.
“It’s surreal, I guess. I guess I can’t wrap my mind around the fact that he is running away,” said Landis.
But the disappearance took an alarming turn Monday morning, when the boy's car was discovered in a ditch along Highway 2 between East Wenatchee and Coulee City.
Its front end was damaged, the windshield was smashed and glass littered the floor.
“I could see him trying to get away for a night or something. But running away like this and taking his car to Eastern Washington and leaving it for dead like that, not a chance,” said Landis.
Merculief's phone is turned off, so it can't be tracked with GPS, he hasn't called friends or relatives and he didn't pack a bag or take much money with him.
Both Merculief's mother and Mitchell’s father drove to Coulee City Tuesday, passed out fliers of the missing teens and started asking questions.
Mitch Mitchell said the teens were spotted at a store called Big Wally's, buying toiletries and asking about public transportation to Spokane.
“(They) explained that their vehicle had been hit by a deer and was un-drivable,” said Mitch Mitchell.
“I presumed at this point that they may have hitchhiked to Spokane,” said Landis.
The missing teens’ parents said because police said there’s no evidence of a crime, they cannot help with the search.
Mitch Mitchell said he drove by the place where Merculief’s Honda Civic was found and noticed a deer carcass, likely the animal that struck the car.
When KIRO 7 Eyewitness News reporter Chris Legeros last spoke to Mitch Mitchell, he was sitting in a Panda Express on the outskirts of Spokane, hoping that his daughter would stop there, because it's one of her favorite places to eat.
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