New twist in hunt for missing duck hunter Tyler Doyle as family friend breaks silence on 'drama and rumors'

A CLOSE friend of a missing duck hunter has urged people to stop donating to a GoFundMe page that was created in his name.

Tyler Doyle, 22, mysteriously vanished near Myrtle Beach, South Carolina on January 26.

Sick rumors are swirling online amid the ongoing search efforts, which are now in their second week.

Tyler is said to have fallen from his vessel after it began to take on water.

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Family friend Hannah Faulk created a GoFundMe page designed to support his wife Lakelyn, who is pregnant.

More than $31,000 has been raised but Lakelyn has urged people to stop donating.

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Over 600 donations have been made since the fundraiser was launched.

Hannah wrote on February 4: “Due to the rumors and everything going around, his wife, Lakelyn, wants me to stop all donations to this go fund me.

“She [would] rather go without, than to deal with drama and rumors while she’s actively searching for her missing husband.

“The search for Tyler is still ongoing. Thanks again for all the donations, but as a woman 30 weeks pregnant she can’t handle everyone’s opinion and stress on her body for the baby’s sake.”

Lakelyn previously shared a post that said she's praying for her husband.

South Carolina Department of Natural Resources confirmed on Tuesday that Tyler is the missing boater, as per WRAL.

The nonprofit organization Wings of Hope Search and Rescue have joined the probe.

Search teams are scouring the waters using boats equipped with underwater sonar and 3D imaging.

Crews are also using cadaver dogs and drones as well.

SCDNR officials confirmed that the Holden Beach and Sunset Beach police departments will continue combing the shoreline during daytime hours.

Tyler’s brother Reed revealed that his sibling and a pal had gone duck hunting when they ran into difficulty.

He said: “The waves got up and out there; it changes really quick, and the back of the boat took on water.

"Waves took over the back of the boat and took Tyler with it."

SEARCH ONGOING

Reed has stressed that the search for his brother has not been called off.

In a Facebook post, he urged people with dogs to meet with him and join the probe.

But, trolls left a series of brutal comments, which prompted Reed to explain how dedicated he is to finding Tyler.

He penned: "To everyone who’s out there spreading rumors about my brother, do you think I’d be out there every day searching for him, missing work, getting no sleep, and waking up every 30 minutes at night because I can’t talk to him or even tell him that I love him?" 

Reed continued: "I want nothing more than to be with my brother right now just for him to give me advice and show me how to be a man.

"So please stop the drama and don't speak on things that you have no idea on."

Reed has begged his followers on TikTok to rubbish any rumors about his brother.

He said: "Tyler Doyle was my brother. We have been out here for 10 days looking.

"Everybody's searching, you know, and we're trying to figure everything out."

It was reported that Lakelyn shared images of items that were believed to have belonged to Tyler.

Decoy ducks, waders, and a driver’s license were found according to her social media post, The Myrtle Beach Online reported.

That post appears to have since been removed from Facebook.

Local officials were forced to take down the post amid online speculation.

A spokesperson for the police in Surf City, North Carolina, exclusively told The U.S. Sun on Tuesday they removed the post after it "became an outlet for people to argue about what may have happened."

They added: "We have never located any items that may or may not belong to Mr. Doyle in or around our immediate area."