Remains found in car of Florida man who disappeared in 2006

Voluntary dive teams assisting investigators in Florida discovered the remains of a man who went missing 16 years ago inside of a submerged vehicle.

The sonar search and recovery teams found a Mitsubishi SUV at the bottom of a retention pond in Palm Harbor on Thursday night with license plates matching those of Robert Helphrey — who disappeared in 2006, Fox 13 reported.

Deputies from the Pinellas County Sheriff’s office towed the car out of the water on Friday.

Officials confirmed that human bones were found inside, although they have not yet confirmed whether they belong to Helphrey.

The Medical Examiner’s Office is working to identify the cause of death.

The case is currently an open and active investigation, according to the sheriff’s office.

Helphrey was last seen leaving Peggy O’Neill’s Bar in Palm Harbor around midnight on May 22, 2006.

Authorities said he was driving to meet a friend but never arrived.

The vehicle and remains were found about six minutes away from the pub, according to the outlet.

The bar is directly across the street from the Thirsty Marlin, where Helphrey had been a general manager.

Brian St. Arnold, Helphrey’s childhood friend who owns the restaurant, said that Helphry had worked the night he disappeared. 

St. Arnold told Fox 13 he hopes the discovery clears any rumors about his friend’s disappearance.

He believes that Helphrey took a wrong turn that night and somehow ended up in the water.

“It’s just amazing that nobody saw him that night. No one heard anything. He didn’t yell for help,” he told the outlet.

St. Arnold received a call from a team member with Sunshine State Sonar Friday morning.

“There’s been lots of mysteries over the years. So many people have asked us, ‘have you heard what happened to Bob? Did anybody find …’ and about a year ago this fella came to us and said that he was going to be looking with sonar equipment and trying to find Bob and gave an interview with us, called me back a couple of days later and said, ‘I will find him. Give me some time.’ He did,” St. Arnold said.

Sunshine State Sonar and Recon Dive Recovery both assisted the sheriff’s office in locating the vehicle. The volunteer organizations sift through national missing persons databases and research any information about missing persons.

“We start looking at the person’s work address, home address, patterns of life where they like to hang out, last cell phone pings,” Ken Fleming, of Recon Dive Recovery said. 

They then use sonar and magnet equipment to help locate vehicles underwater. Just last week, the team found the remains of a missing teacher in a vehicle in Port Orange, Fleming said.

The groups had been working on Helphrey’s case for about a year, Fleming said. They said they were able to identify Helphrey’s vehicle despite the zero-visibility conditions.

Now, Fleming said he hopes his family can have some closure after 16 years.

“When the family member comes up and gives you a hug and it’s bittersweet, you know, they’re glad you’re there. They wish you weren’t,” Fleming said.