Tony Ward's family 'incredibly concerned' about his disappearance

The family of a missing Fredericton businessman is pleading for the public's help to locate him.

Anthony "Tony" James Ward, 56, was last seen in the Hill area of the city on Friday, Feb. 13, and his car was discovered six days later in a church parking lot in the Chipman-Minto area.

Ward's sister, Peggy Ward, of Toronto, says his disappearance is "completely out of character."

"You know, I could say to you ‘A UFO sucked him off the planet,’ and that would make as much sense as anything that’s happening right now," she said.

"So everybody is just stunned and shocked and incredibly concerned."

When he was reported missing by co-workers, Ward says she initially thought her brother, a world traveller, who has trips planned to Las Vegas, Madagascar and China in the coming year, may have just wanted to get away from all of the snow.

But he wouldn't disappear without saying anything to anyone, she said.

So Ward and her two other brothers have been working closely with the Fredericton Police Force and the RCMP, trying to find leads and follow up on clues.

"So far, everything is going nowhere," she said.

Her brother, an energy systems consultant at Enbridge Gas, was his usual "upbeat self" the day he disappeared and seemed to follow his usual routine, she said.

And the only clue — his 2010 Toyota Camry in the church parking lot — has led to more questions than answers, since it was found a week after he went missing, more than an hour from his home in the Silverwood area, and he has no known connection with the Chipman-Minto area, said Ward.

"It might have been somebody else who put his car in Chipman, we don’t know that," she said. "There’s so many possibilities here and so much that is still , you know, needs to be looked at because none of it makes sense and therefore every possibility is still on the table."

Police are currently conducting a forensic audit of the car, she said.

Well-loved, well-regarded

Ward describes her brother as being "kind, generous, thoughtful and helpful with anyone and everyone."

"He's the kind of guy who is well-loved by his family and friends, well-regarded by his colleagues at work, he’s a world traveller, a terrific photographer, a fabulous cook, a guy who has a real zest for life — and so this just has come right out of the blue and makes no sense."

If he was facing any struggles, he would have confided in his siblings, she said, describing their relationships as "uncharacteristically close."

"We’ve been able to always talk about that with each other, or reach out to each other, and whatever any of us needed, we were there for each other.

"So again, this is really uncharacteristic of Tony that he wouldn’t reach out because in the past, he’s always reached out. Because we just do that with and for each other."

Tony Ward is described as being about five-foot-nine, 175 pounds, with brown eyes, short greying hair and a moustache.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Fredericton Police Force at 506-460-2300. "No tip is insignificant," police said in a Facebook post.