The family of a 41-year-old Chicago woman is “deeply concerned” for her safety after she went missing from a yoga retreat in the Bahamas.
Taylor Casey, 41, was last seen on Wednesday near Paradise Island, the Royal Bahamas Police Department said in a public bulletin. HuffPost emailed police seeking more information but did not immediately receive a response.
According to a press release from a family spokesperson, Casey, a 15-year yoga practitioner, traveled to the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat in the Bahamas “to achieve a long-term goal of deepening her yoga practice.”
The retreat center told CBS News that it had asked authorities to investigate after Casey missed class Thursday morning.
“The ashram asks that anyone with information about Ms. Cayce contact local police,” the center told the outlet. “We will cooperate with authorities in their investigation.”
In a family press release, her mother, Colette Seymour, said she believes Casey is “at risk because she wanted to share her yoga retreat experience with others upon returning to the United States.”
“There’s no way Taylor could have disappeared like this,” said Seymour, who is now heading to the Bahamas to search for her daughter.
Earlier this year, the U.S. State Department issued a travel advisory for the Caribbean nation, stating that “violent crimes, including theft, armed robbery, and sexual assault, are occurring in both tourist and non-tourist areas.”
