RUTHERFORD COUNTY, TN – WGNS has learned of a sad ending to a missing person case that came to a close on Saturday, August 23, 2025.

Friends and family had grown concerned after not hearing from 68-year-old Danny E. Brown for several days, reporting that he was last seen on August 17, 2025. Photos of Brown and the tow truck he drove were circulated on the Tennessee Missing and Unsolved Facebook page just days before his death in a single-vehicle crash on Interstate 24 in the Smyrna area.

According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP), Brown was behind the wheel of a 2022 Dodge Ram wrecker when, for unknown reasons, he left the eastbound lanes of I-24 near mile marker 68, close to Rocky Fork Road. The preliminary THP report states that the truck struck both a traffic sign and a standing tree.

WGNS obtained the report on Sunday, which confirmed that Brown, a Smyrna resident, was wearing his seatbelt at the time of the crash. No other vehicles or individuals were listed in the report, indicating the wreck only involved the tow truck Brown was driving.

During the investigation, authorities temporarily shut down portions of I-24 on Saturday. The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) shared on social media that the roadway was closed “due to a law enforcement investigation.”

The exact cause of the crash remains under investigation, and no further details have been released.