David Robinson turned his life around after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the United States, selling his trucking business to join the Army and serving two tours of duty in Afghanistan before being injured in an IED blast.
“I joined the military because I felt a duty to fight for our country, to protect our democracy and to defend our way of life,” he told Fox News Digital.
Decades later, his life changed again when his geologist son disappeared without a trace from an Arizona oil well site, and now he’s running for Congress, focusing on finding missing people across the country.
He served as a combat engineer until his retirement from the Army, where he started a new business in his hometown of Columbia, South Carolina, but his son’s disappearance led him to another desert, this time on the other side of the country, in search of answers.
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Missing geologist Daniel Robinson (left) and his father, David Robinson II, are pictured in an undated photo provided by his family. (David Robinson II)
“I’m sitting here right now and I’m watching a call come in from Arizona. My daughter called me and she ended up in the Sonoran Desert in Arizona,” he told Fox News Digital.
“My journey from there led me to running. [for Congress]When I get sick or tired,” he said.
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He said there have been no breakthroughs in the search for his son, but he is meeting more and more families of missing Americans.
Daniel Robinson is seen in an undated photo provided by his father. (David Robinson II)
“I met with families who lost loved ones,” he said. “I learned a lot. … I went to meetings with telecommunications companies. [companies]”I’ve spoken to senators, I’ve spoken to law enforcement across the board, and I’ve learned the details of what’s not right, the policies and laws that are really hindering our efforts to find missing Americans.”
One problem with how the case is being investigated is how it is being approached about phone records, he said, because telecommunications companies typically require a warrant before providing information such as cellphone ring tones.
Daniel Robinson, a geologist who went missing in Arizona: Father continues to search for son a year later
Candace Cooley and David Robinson, whose son Dylan Lowndes disappeared from their Utah farm and was later found murdered by squatters next door, are part of a community of parents of missing young Americans. (Michael Lewis/Fox News Digital)
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“By the time that happens, it may be too late,” he said. “The other problem is that police can’t do it unless it’s a criminal case or unless someone is in serious danger or fears something is wrong.”
He said in cases like his son’s, the circumstances remain a mystery but the cause was not immediately clear. His wrecked jeep was found almost a month after he went missing, but his phone account was registered in his daughter’s name and was paid by her.
“It’s a problem for families,” he said.
Missing Arizona geologist: New details emerge about Daniel Robinson’s disappearance
He said he would propose legislation that would make account data immediately available to ratepayers, or at least to law enforcement at the account holder’s request, with an exception for domestic violence cases.
David Robinson, center, participates in a panel discussion with the parents of Gabby Pettit and Dylan Lowndes, two other young Americans who went missing under suspicious circumstances. (Michael Lewis/Fox News Digital)
Data storage is another issue: If police can’t get a warrant in time, important information could be lost, he said.
His campaign pledges also include other traditional issues in his constituency, from education to prescription drug costs to abortion and climate change.
Daniel Robinson, a geologist working for an energy company in Arizona, disappeared from a remote work site in June 2021.
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The images show Daniel Robinson’s 2017 Jeep Renegade, which was involved in the crash, and Daniel Robinson in an undated photo. (Buckeye Police Department)
Buckeye police last year released more than 120 pages of investigative records related to the case, which remains open.
“There were no signs Cheating” the detective wrote in a supplemental report, but also said there was “no indication that Daniel had packed any luggage or made plans to travel.”
On July 19, 2021, a rancher found Robinson’s 2017 Jeep Renegade. Beat and roll The vehicle crashed into a ravine on the passenger side. The vehicle had front-end impact damage, a broken driver’s side window, and part of the roof missing. The vehicle was still in motion. There was no blood in the vehicle.
Police found clothing, Robinson’s cell phone and work laptop in the car – and no cash in his wallet – but no sign of the missing geologist.
Daniel Robinson is seen in an undated photo provided by his father. (David Robinson II)
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But Robinson faces an uphill battle: He is running as a Democrat in a district that has consistently elected Republicans since 1965.
The seat is currently held by Rep. Joe Wilson, an Army veteran who was first elected in 2001.
Both men are running in their respective parties’ primaries, scheduled for June 11.
