Possible missing person May 2012 Burgos region

[kohara]

post has been deleted. see latest response

 

[tyrrek]

Hi Kevin

Sorry to hear about your worries.

As I remember from my Caminos albergues will record the names of pilgrims, however these are often paper records and may not be easy to search quickly. Also, if Benny wanted to 'go missing' for a while he could use a false name on his pilgrim passport, depending on where he got it (sometimes you just get a blank one to fill in yourself). It would certainly be easier to involve the Police to give the case some priority, but I understand given his history why you are reluctant to do so too quickly.

The section you suggest he may be walking (Logrono, Burgos...) is relatively flat, so even if he isn't very fit he could go quite a long way just doing his own thing by way of short walking days. It's only really after Astorga that it gets hilly again. I can't think of any places where he could be injured and not found quickly. Certainly no steep cliffs or anything of that nature.

See what reaction you get from the forum. Quite a few people have just come back or are there at the moment. I hope things work out well.

Keith

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Albergues record pilgrim passport information because it is a police requirement. Contact the police or Guardia Civil to have a records search done. Albergues probably won't release information unless asked by the police. The Pilgrim Office in Santiago will not release records.

Good luck.

 

[kohara]

Cheers Keith and Falcon,
Some good advice there, best off contacting the guardia civil. Will get in touch with them.
I will also wait and see here if any members have bumped into my uncle somewhere along the way as that could be very useful information. He makes friends quite easily and could have hooked up with people on the walk and even moved on somewhere with them as he has no pressing matters or ties at home
Thanks for your concern,

 

[tyrrek]

Cheers Keith and Falcon,
Some good advice there, best off contacting the guardia civil. Will get in touch with them.
I will also wait and see here if any members have bumped into my uncle somewhere along the way as that could be very useful information. He makes friends quite easily and could have hooked up with people on the walk and even moved on somewhere with them as he has no pressing matters or ties at home
Thanks for your concern,

Yes, someone will remember him if he's an outgoing, friendly guy. It probably is time to get the police involved.

It is easy to get carried away on the Camino if you don't have pressing issues at home. My last Camino was supposed to be Pamplona-Burgos, but I missed the plane home so rather than catching the next one I just carried on to Santiago. These things happen. It's worrying that he hasn't been in touch, that's all.

All the best!

 

[JohnnieWalker]

Hola Kevin

I can understand your worry. The Pilgrims' Office in Santiago and individual albergues along the routes will search their records at the request of relatives. However this can be a long process to coordinate.

I think you said that your uncle is Irish. Therefore you should contact the Irish Embassy: http://www.embassyofireland.es/home/index.aspx?id=33978 with a copy of his details and good photographs of him. In my experience they will help you deal with the Spanish authorities both centrally and through the consular network they have in Spain.

You should also e mail the Irish Society of the Friends of St. James http://www.stjamesirl.com/ and the Confraternity of St James in the UK asking them to circulate their networks.

You can also contact me here at the Pilgrims' Office in Santiago http://www.peregrinossantiago.es/ email: peregrinos@archicompostela.org if you think we can be of assistance.

Please let us know how you get on.

John

 

[kohara]

@ tyrrek, i would have expected not to hear from him for about a month or so. It is now 11 weeks so that is quite some time. Thanks for the advice

@JohnnieWalker, Thanks for those pointers, i will start compiling some information and get in touch with the Irish embassy and both fraternities of St. James. You can understand my reluctance to get the full weight of a 'missing persons search' going as there is quite a difference between that category and a 'voluntarily missing person'
I will let you know how it goes and i may be in touch re contacting one or two of the albergues just to get a picture of the direction he has taken. I will also keep you informed of any developments.
Thanks for your help.

 

[kohara]

Hello guys
After having spoke with a few people i know about this issue at greater length, i have decided to take down my original notification. I had put up the post after having spoken with another family member and got a touch guilty that i should be doing more to contact my uncle as he has been not in contact for approx 3 months. I would normally meet up with him once a week in the UK.
However i have received some objective advice today and my gut instinct is to go with that advice and wait until he contacts - my uncle has always been a bit of a lone wolf as well as being staunchly independent minded and he may be very put out by the fact that a missing persons search is underway when he has just gone to ground for a period.
I apologise for any false alarm raised, but it is a bit of a tricky situation to be in as he did tell me he would be in contact (but when exactly was left up in the air!)
I want to thank all the board members who have provided me with help and concern, it is appreciated.
I did not want to just remove the thread but after perhaps a day or so i may remove it
Thanks
Kevin