On October 5, 2000, four-year-old Tristen Alan Myers vanished from the rural home of his great-aunt and great-uncle on Microwave Tower Road in Roseboro, North Carolina. Known as Buddy, Tristen had blond hair, blue eyes, a scar on the left side of his neck and a speech impediment. He was last seen walking near the residence with two dogs — a tan three-legged Chihuahua mix named Buck and a black Doberman puppy named Sasha — wearing a black t-shirt, blue jeans and white Mickey Mouse tennis shoes.

The disappearance sparked one of the largest searches in Sampson County history, with officers and volunteers combing woods, farmland and ponds. Tracking dogs followed a scent to a nearby pond, which was drained, but no sign of Tristen was found. In a strange development, both dogs returned to the home days later — Buck on October 10 and Sasha on October 14 — and neither appeared to have been in the woods for an extended period.

Authorities kept the investigation open and have considered possibilities including abduction or an accidental death in the rural landscape. Tristen’s mother died in a car crash in 2004 without ever knowing what happened to him. Does anyone have memories or information about that area, the dogs, or that week in October 2000 that could help explain what happened to Buddy?