CHICAGO — Authorities in Chicago have issued a missing person alert for a woman who went missing during a yoga retreat in the Bahamas about two weeks ago.
Taylor Casey, 41, of Chicago, was last seen on Wednesday, June 19, at the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat on Paradise Island, near the Bahamian capital.
Chicago Police issued the alert just after 1:30 p.m. Monday, asking anyone who may have had recent direct contact or communication with Casey to contact Chicago Police 5th District SVU at 312-746-6554.
The alert was issued after Chicago police received a call about Casey’s disappearance, according to Chicago police.
Ongoing efforts to locate Taylor Casey
Monday’s alert was the latest effort to locate the woman, with family members saying they fear the worst.
A family spokesman said Casey, who had been practicing yoga for 15 years, had left Chicago to attend a yoga teacher training program to pursue a long-term goal of deepening her practice.
Casey’s niece, Tracia Conard, said when organizers of the yoga retreat contacted her to say her niece hadn’t shown up to class, she knew something was wrong because her niece’s silence was unusual for her.
Retreat officials later said they had also reported Casey’s disappearance to the U.S. Embassy after she failed to show up.
Conard said it was not unusual for Casey to travel to the Bahamas, and that he had done so in February.
“Taylor is at risk because she wanted to share her yoga retreat experience with others when she returned home. She would never disappear like this,” Casey’s mother, Collette Seymour, said in a statement last week.
On Tuesday, June 18, just one day before she disappeared, Casey’s family received photos of herself at the beach, looking like she was having fun.
A Facebook group called “Find Taylor Casey” was set up after her disappearance.
The Royal Bahamas Police issued a missing person alert for Casey on Friday, June 21, two days after she was last seen.
Police Chief Chrislyn Skippings told WGN News there is no information at this time that indicates a crime was committed.
Family members of the missing woman have traveled to the Bahamas to assist in the search.
Missing woman’s cell phone found, clues revealed
On the morning of Tuesday, June 25th, authorities found Casey’s cell phone submerged in the water.
Conard told NewsNation Live on Wednesday that only he was able to locate Casey using the Find My iPhone app, and when he checked the app, he saw the phone was in the water — the same spot where authorities later found it.
Bahamas Travel Advisory
In January, the U.S. government issued a Level 2 travel advisory for the Bahamas.
The advisory warned travelers about flooding and crime in certain parts of the Bahamas, including the area Casey traveled to.
“The majority of crimes occur in New Providence Island (Nassau) and Grand Bahama Island (Freeport). In Nassau, please increase vigilance in the “Over the Hill” area (south of Shirley Street) where gang violence has led to high homicide rates, primarily affecting local residents,” the advisory reads in part. “Violent crimes, including theft, armed robbery, and sexual assault, occur in both tourist and non-tourist areas. Please exercise caution if staying in short-term vacation rental properties that do not have private security companies.”
In a statement to NewsNation, the State Department said it was aware of Casey’s disappearance and that no other matter had a higher priority than the welfare and safety of U.S. citizens overseas.
Bahamian authorities are urging anyone with information regarding Casey’s whereabouts to contact the Royal Bahamas Police Force’s Criminal Investigations Division at 502-9991/2 or Crime Stoppers at 328-8477.
