Friend sought in Durham man's disappearance

McAbee's mother said she knew something was wrong when her son didn't show up for his son's birthday party.

"Never ever in 100 million years would he have missed that," said Cindy McAbee.

Investigators said his estranged wife found his car at his home at 2734 Saddle Drive.

"The key was still in the ignition and a large amount of cash was left inside the car on the console," said Lt. Stan Harris.

Deputies started searching for McAbee, who has brown hair and green eyes, is about 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs approximately 195 pounds.

"Nobody just disappears off the face of the earth," Cindy McAbee said. "Somebody has to know something and have heard something."

Investigators said they would like to speak with Armando Reyna-Soto, who is a friend and worked with McAbee on several business ventures, including when McAbee owned Hollywood Dry Cleaners on Guess Road.

Reyna-Soto is not charged in the case. Investigators said they just want to question him. His last known address is 2108 Greenwich Place. He has brown hair and eyes and is 5 feet 6 inches tall.

"They were, from what we gathered, very good friends," Harris said.

Cindy McAbee said Reyna-Soto is "actually a very good friend of the family, of everybody. We all knew him and thought very highly of him."

Investigators said they believe Reyna-Soto may have gone to Mexico. A search warrant says McAbee's wife allegedly admitted to having an affair with a friend of her husband's who fled to Mexico after his disappearance.

The warrant also says McAbee has ties to the drug trade and that investigators do not believe that he is missing by his own choice.

A search of McAbee's record shows numerous charges, including possession of a firearm by a felon, felony breaking and entering, larceny after breaking and entering, possession of stolen goods/property, larceny by employee, obtaining property by false pretense and trafficking in marijuana.

Reyna-Soto's record is shorter and includes a charge for driving with a revoked license.

Cindy McAbee said she just wants her son back, especially for his two children who need him.

"It's like the rest of the world just keeps on going and everything is normal, except your world is falling apart and you are trying to hold it all together," she said.

Anyone with any information about either McAbee's disappearance or the location of Reyna-Soto are encouraged to call the Durham County Sheriff's Office at 919-560-0900, 919-560-0882 or 919-560-0880.