Case file
Key facts
- Name: Pawan Kumar Gaire (publicly reported as Pawan Gaire)
- Age at disappearance: 29
- Last heard from: March 11, 2026
- Location: Lincoln, Nebraska — he drove to Florida; his vehicle was found at Park East on Pensacola Beach, Florida, in a discovery the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office publicly announced on April 2, 2026
- Height / build: 5’8″, about 150 lbs; black hair, dark eyes
- Background: PhD in Electrical Engineering from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln (graduated May 2025); his dissertation, completed under advisor Shubhendu Bhardwaj, was on physics-embedded neural networks for solving computational physics problems
- Medical note: The Nebraska State Patrol listing noted he may be in need of medical attention
- Status: Still missing — no source checked as of October 2026 reports him found
- Investigating agency: Lincoln Police Department (missing-person case opened March 16, 2026); Escambia County Sheriff’s Office (Florida) — 850-436-9620
A drive south
Pawan Kumar Gaire was 29 years old, a recent PhD graduate in Electrical Engineering from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, living in an apartment in Lincoln. His doctoral work, published by the university in May 2025, was titled “Physics Embedded Neural Network: A Novel Data-free Numerical Method for Solving Computational Physics Problems” — research on using neural networks to solve the partial differential equations behind electromagnetic-wave and other physics problems, supervised by Professor Shubhendu Bhardwaj. In early March 2026, less than a year after completing that degree, he got in his car and drove south.
The trip left a thin trail. A friend’s timeline, shared with KOLN (10/11 Now), recorded that Gaire had abdominal surgery in late February; that on March 1 he told his landlord he would be back at his Lincoln apartment in two weeks; that his vehicle was spotted in Tennessee on March 3 and near Milton, Florida, on March 11. That same day — March 11 — he called his parents in Nepal from outside to let them know he was doing well. It was the last time anyone heard from him.
On March 16, the Lincoln Police Department opened a missing-person case after Gaire missed an appointment with an advisor and never returned home. Authorities searched his apartment on March 24 and found nothing of interest.
The empty car at Pensacola Beach
Gaire’s vehicle was found at Park East on Pensacola Beach, Florida — more than a thousand miles from Lincoln. A friend’s timeline, shared with KOLN, dated the discovery to March 27, 2026; the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office publicly announced the discovery on April 2, 2026, when it issued a release saying deputies had found the vehicle of missing 29-year-old Pawan Kumar Gaire at Park East (as reported by the Pensacola News Journal). Since then, local authorities have searched the area, including the water, without finding any leads.
KOLN reported on March 31 that Gaire was listed on the Nebraska State Patrol’s missing-persons website, where he was described as 5’8″ and 150 pounds, with black hair and dark eyes — and noted as possibly in need of medical attention. The Nebraska Nepalese Society issued a missing-person notice for him on March 16, 2026.
The KOLN report also carried a correction worth preserving: Gaire was initially described as a UNL student, but records showed he was not a current student — he had graduated with his PhD in Electrical Engineering in May 2025.
Where the case stands
More than seven months have passed. No outlet or agency has reported him found.
The arc of the case — a brilliant young graduate, a solitary cross-country drive, an abandoned car at a Florida beach — has kept it in the minds of true-crime audiences. But beneath the mystery is a simpler fact: a family in Nepal has not heard from their son since March 11, and nothing found since has answered where he went after his car stopped.
Theories: what might have happened
He entered the water or was injured near the beach. An abandoned car at a beach, months of silence, and the possibility of needing medical attention point toward the water — and authorities did search it. What supports it: the car’s location, the water search. What undercuts it: the searches found no trace of him.
He left the car and continued on foot or with someone else. A person can abandon a car and keep moving — and the friend’s timeline shows Gaire had been traveling alone for days before reaching Florida. What supports it: the lack of physical evidence at the beach. What undercuts it: no confirmed sighting of him after March 11.
What is rumor and what is fact: online discussion has speculated freely about this case, but law enforcement has released almost nothing beyond the facts above. Those speculations should be treated as unverified.
Have information?
Contact the Lincoln Police Department, which opened the missing-person case in March 2026. In Florida, contact the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at 850-436-9620, or Gulf Coast Crime Stoppers at 850-433-STOP. In an emergency, dial 911.
Timeline
- Late February 2026 — Gaire has abdominal surgery (per a friend’s timeline shared with KOLN).
- March 1, 2026 — Gaire tells his landlord he will return to his Lincoln apartment in two weeks.
- March 3, 2026 — His vehicle is spotted in Tennessee.
- March 11, 2026 — Vehicle spotted near Milton, Florida; Gaire calls his parents in Nepal to say he is doing well. Last contact.
- March 16, 2026 — Lincoln Police Department opens a missing-person case after he misses an advisor appointment and never returns home. The Nebraska Nepalese Society issues a missing-person notice.
- March 24, 2026 — Authorities search his Lincoln apartment; no leads.
- March 31, 2026 — KOLN (10/11 Now) publishes its report, noting his Nebraska State Patrol missing-persons listing.
- April 2, 2026 — The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office issues a release announcing that Gaire’s vehicle was found at Park East on Pensacola Beach, Florida (reported by the Pensacola News Journal). A friend’s timeline shared with KOLN had dated the discovery to March 27. Local searches, including of the water, produce no leads.
- October 2026 — No report of him being found has appeared in any source checked.
- Today — Still missing.
Frequently asked questions
- Is Pawan Kumar Gaire still missing?
- Yes. As of October 2026, more than seven months after he was last heard from, no outlet or agency has reported him found.
- Has Pawan Gaire been found?
- No. He has not been found, and no remains or confirmed sighting have been reported. The last confirmed contact was his March 11, 2026 call to his parents in Nepal; the last trace after that is his car, found abandoned at Park East on Pensacola Beach.
- Who is Pawan Kumar Gaire?
- A 29-year-old electrical engineer from Nepal living in Lincoln, Nebraska. He earned his PhD in Electrical Engineering from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in May 2025, with a dissertation on physics-embedded neural networks for solving computational physics problems, supervised by Professor Shubhendu Bhardwaj. He is not a current UNL student — early coverage that described him that way was corrected by KOLN.
- Where was his car found?
- At Park East on Pensacola Beach, Florida — over a thousand miles from his home in Lincoln, Nebraska. The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office announced the discovery on April 2, 2026; local authorities searched the area, including the water, without finding leads.
- Was he a student?
- No. Early coverage described him as a UNL student, but KOLN corrected the record: he had graduated with his PhD in Electrical Engineering from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in May 2025.
- When was he last heard from?
- March 11, 2026, when he called his parents in Nepal from near Milton, Florida, to say he was doing well. His vehicle was spotted in Tennessee on March 3 and near Milton, Florida, on March 11.
- How can I help?
- Share this case file. If you have any information, contact the Lincoln Police Department, or in Florida the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at 850-436-9620 (or Crime Stoppers at 850-433-STOP).
Sources
Official / law enforcement: Lincoln Police Department (missing-person case opened March 16, 2026; apartment searched March 24), via KOLN reporting; Nebraska State Patrol missing-persons website listing for Pawan Gaire (cited by KOLN); Escambia County Sheriff’s Office release (April 2, 2026) announcing the vehicle found at Park East, Pensacola Beach — as reported by the Pensacola News Journal; ECSO tip line 850-436-9620 (ECSO’s published public number, also used for this case).
News: KOLN / 1011 Now, “Recent UNL grad vanishes after driving from Lincoln to Florida” (March 31, 2026) — https://gray-wowt-prod.gtv-cdn.com/2026/03/31/unl-student-vanishes-after-driving-lincoln-florida/ ; Pensacola News Journal, “Vehicle of missing Nebraska man found at Park East on Pensacola Beach” (April 2, 2026; reporting the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office release); Nebraska Nepalese Society missing-person notice (March 16, 2026).
University: University of Nebraska–Lincoln, DigitalCommons@UNL, Pawan Gaire dissertation record — “Physics Embedded Neural Network: A Novel Data-free Numerical Method for Solving Computational Physics Problems” (May 2025; Department of Electrical Engineering; advisor Shubhendu Bhardwaj) — https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissunl/300/
Found an error? Tell us via the About page and we will fix it promptly and note the change here. Last verified October 2026.