India - Jonathan Spollen, 28, Irish journalist, Rishikesh, 3 Feb 2012

[Littlegreenlady]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-38571087

In early 2012, Irish journalist Jonathan Spollen was visiting India - and then he vanished. In a series of interviews in the build-up to the anniversary of his disappearance, his friends and family have given their take on a case that has become no less mysterious over time.

His last known conversation was on the phone with Lynda on 3 February 2012. She was in Dublin; he was travelling in northern India.
They spoke for just under six minutes; not long, given the fact they could at times happily chat by phone for more than two hours.
Jonathan told his mum he had changed his mind about travelling to Delhi. He would instead remain in Rishikesh, in the foothills of the Himalayas, to go on a short trek.
He was reported missing on this date five years ago.

 

[SeaEclipse]

I came here after reading that article and was surprised that we didn't already have a thread on him, since there was quite a bit of discussion of him elsewhere on the internet. I'd suggest following the link in the above article to the IndiaMike forum, where there is a very informative (if overwhelming) 2,000+ page thread in which the family actively participated.

 

[tarabull]

Snipped from opening link...

...Ryan Chambers had already spent two months in India when he arrived in Rishikesh in August 2005, and he was getting ready to fly home to his parents near Adelaide.

On 23 August, he was staying in an ashram in the city, but was restless all night. In the morning, the 21-year-old walked out of the building in only his shorts, leaving all his belongings behind.

Almost 12 years later, Ryan's parents Jock and Di still do not know what happened to their son.

Not long after Jock Chambers' third visit to Rishikesh, he got a call from a friend of Jonathan. The families then kept in contact; the Chambers' case offering a glimpse of how it feels to live with uncertainty for an even longer time. Lynda calls their ongoing efforts to find Ryan "a constant source of inspiration".

INDIA - Ryan Chambers: Australian, 21, Rishikesh, 24 Aug 2005

 

[tarabull]

After disappearing Jonathan spoke to a "Babu"...

After disappearing Ryan spoke to a "Baba"...

:what:

 

[tarabull]

'I WON'T GIVE UP' Mother of missing Irish journalist Jonathan Spollen insists she’ll never give up hope of finding him
February 27, 2017

https://www.thesun.ie/news/642707/m...ists-shell-never-give-up-hope-of-finding-him/

 

[Littlegreenlady]

After disappearing Jonathan spoke to a "Babu"...

After disappearing Ryan spoke to a "Baba"...

:what:

It was a cruel hoaxer

From the BBC link above

Much of the information that made its way to Jonathan's family was vague - until one long message leaped out.
It was written by a man named Babu, who said he was a dentist originally from India but now living in Australia. He said he had met Jonathan on a bus in Chennai (Madras), some 2,400km to the south of Rishikesh.
Jonathan was well, Babu said, but was seeking a spiritual journey. He had been of great comfort to Babu on their journey, he added.
The email volunteered great detail about Jonathan and his story, and was the most promising lead yet to his family. Lynda changed her travel plans and arranged to fly to Chennai and meet Babu. The search team in Rishikesh prepared to divert there to launch a major advertising campaign: Babu had given them their most promising lead yet.
It was at this point that Liz McCauley, Jonathan's younger cousin, made an important discovery.
"We Googled his name and an email address that he had, and we didn't find anything," she says. But something had clicked for Liz, and she ventured back on to the website set up by Ryan Chambers' parents.
"We went through the guestbook there, and found a message from 'Babu', with the same email address saying, 'I met your son' - and we noticed it was basically the same story."
The mysterious 'Babu' was no more than a hoaxer.
"I rang Lynda and told her what we had found, which was devastating," Liz says. "This guy had just been so incredibly legit - this one was so convincing."

Any hope that 'Babu' was for real was dispelled when a call was made to the hospital where he claimed to work. They didn't know him. The hoax was confirmed.

 

[Littlegreenlady]

I hate to say it but reading the reports of where his belongings were found, I wonder if it was a suicide

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lakshman_Jhula This is the bridge near where his belongings were found. I know it's an obvious conclusion and maybe he had an accident instead. Apparently the buddhist monks would cremate any bodies they found in the river, so if he did jump or fell, there would be no body to identify,

 

[shivangi]

lakshman jhula is the best place in Rishikesh

 

[shivangi]

rishikesh have world capital of yoga and have lots of type of yoga like kundalini yoga

 

[Littlegreenlady]

Bumping this thread a little - has anyone listened to the podcast, Astray? I came across it when it was advertised on another podcast, about the "india syndrome" and the missing people and people who kill themselves in India. Very interesting so far.

Examining The Dangers Of Enlightenment In ‘Astray’ Podcast From iHeartMedia

Ryan Chambers is in the first episode, and Jonathan is discussed in a later epsiode. Other cases are also mentioned, all very sad