CHICAGO (CBS) — A Chicago man was reported missing while traveling in the Bahamas.
Royal Bahamas Police confirmed that Taylor Casey, 41, was last seen on June 19 near Paradise Island in Nassau, Bahamas, a popular tourist destination with many resorts, restaurants and beaches.
A friend said in a Facebook post that Casey had been attending a yoga retreat centre before her “mysterious disappearance”.
Casey’s niece, who lives in suburban Hazel Crest, said family members, including her grandmother, planned to go to the Bahamas on Tuesday to help with the search.
“We are deeply concerned about Taylor’s safety and well-being. We love Taylor and want her to come home,” Casey’s mother, Collette Seymour, said in a statement.
As of January 2024, the Bahamas Level 2 Travel Advisory “Violent crimes, including theft, armed robbery and sexual assault, occur in both tourist and non-tourist areas,” U.S. officials warned.
“The reason the State Department issued this advisory is because gang crime is on the rise in the Bahamas,” CBS News travel editor Peter Greenberg said. “Places like Mexico and Jamaica are seeing an increase in gang crime, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t go there.”
Greenberg added that while these warnings often create fear, it’s important to be aware of your surroundings.
“Where trouble can arise for American travelers is when they’re not traveling in a group, for example, out at night with friends or alone in an area they don’t know, don’t understand or are unfamiliar with,” Greenberg said. “That’s when they can get into trouble.”
The U.S. Embassy in the Bahamas and the Bahamas Tourism Authority did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the disappearance.
