BELIZE - Alison MacKenzie, 43, tourist, from AZ, Rendezvous Caye, 18 Jan 2020

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diggndeeperstill said:
How do we find out if this is still an active investigation?

Do the fbi have a list of active investigations anywhere? I’ve looked and I can’t seem to find it.

Would it change anyone’s mind what happened to her if they found out she was on the island with a convicted rapist, a drug runner, or corrupt official? I’m not saying that’s what the truth was, just pointing out the unknowns. I don’t understand the ability to make assumptions without a lot of information.
This case may very well be a tragic accident but it bugs me on many, many levels and not just because of what I’ve read on the news.

There is not one interview in person with anyone that was on that island, or for that matter in all of Belize that she was in contact with.

As far as being afraid of being in the water or on the water. I see those as two different things. But I will say, anyone, that has spent any time around the water knows you do not get in the water at night. Or sunrise or sunset. Shark feeding time. Although, I’m not sure if they have sharks close to shore there.

Anyway- my main question- how do we find out if it is dropped or still being investigated?
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I completely agree with you. Why haven't we heard a single thing about this investigation in days. You're right, we've heard from noone who was on the island, and it's just bizarre and deeply upsetting at this point.
 
According to weather reports the evening of the 17th there were gusty winds and turbulent waves so the buried the sand theory is a possibility but don't think it would have been a good night for a stroll.


Seajay said:
It just seems traveling to any Central, South American country, or some of the islands are so dangerous because of unrest with their governments and corruption among the police and governments.

Of course, in Mexico it’s drugs and cartels. Americans are kidnapped for ransom and/or killed.

Mexico has a kidnapping problem. And it’s getting worse.


Hundreds of people in Mexico are kidnapped every year. And the problem’s getting worse
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I lived in Mexico for 2 years '96-98 for a study abroad program (undergrad) in Queretaro (100 miles north of Mex City) & there was also a graduate program there in Mexico City I planned on doing as well. The year before I was supposed to go 2000, like 10 students in the program were kidnapped coming out of a disco club getting into taxis. 2 taxis kidnapped them and made them withdraw from ATMs then drove them around for hours then let them go! Program was cancelled that following year and moved to Queretaro. it's gotten far far worse since then. I travelled with program to places you'd be lucky to make it out alive!
 
feelinghip said:
I can’t keep wondering if she had brought with her a very large amount of money for her six month stay. Has been mentioned numerous times that they were going to buy property while there.
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One does not need to carry cash when traveling. Ive traveled all around southern Mexico, Guatemala & Costa Rica and used local atms. I would take out enough cash until the next time I planned to be near banks.
 
I have not been to this island but have spent a fair amount of time on the island the tour leaves from, Caye Caulker, and have done snorkeling trips in the area, so I've been following this case.

Shark/gator attack or rogue wave - highly unlikely. The sharks in the area are non aggressive and attacks are incredibly rare. The island is 20 miles offshore and doesn't appear to have much vegetation or habitat for gators. Belize beaches do not really have waves as they break at the barrier reef.

However, there are plenty of other dangers in the water. For one, the Belize cayes are full of coral which is incredibly sharp - it's easy to cut yourself and lose enough blood to get weak and disoriented, which could lead to a bad outcome even in shallow water. And this island is very close to the barrier reef which is surrounded by very strong currents. I'm a strong swimmer and thought it was going to slam me into the reef a few times while snorkeling. It's very common for ocean-inexperienced people to not realize how close to shore the dangerous currents start and assume they are safe because the water was so calm a few steps back. Once caught in a current, you can get slammed against a reef, disoriented in the dark, exhaust yourself trying to fight it so you can't tread water to wait for help. Honestly, it would be very easy to die in the water even if she wasn't intoxicated.

I know the family said she doesn't swim, but she was going through a lot and maybe she decided to face her fears - especially if she was under the influence of alcohol, a manic episode, prescription drugs, or whatever else caused the erratic behavior. (Bipolar disorder wouldn't onset at her age, but it's not unheard of for people with Bipolar II to go undiagnosed, and a manic or hypomanic episode would make her far more likely to take all kinds of risks like swimming and drinking.) Or maybe she had been getting over her water fears already, since she had been in Belize for a month? Her instagram had a picture of a waterslide into the ocean.

I don't think it's suspicious that a guard would be telling people not to walk around at night. There are many ways that drunk people walking around in the dark surrounded by water could hurt themselves and they don't want to get sued or have to interrupt the trip to take someone to the hospital. I don't see this as evidence of anything more nefarious. I also just don't think that randomly witnessing a drug exchange makes sense - there are plenty of uninhabited islands with more vegetation cover for them to meet on, and it's unlikely that she would be able to accurately describe anyone she saw in the dark, so killing her and drawing American attention would be riskier than letting her go.

I feel like a water accident is the Occam's Razor explanation. Even with the fear of water, an intoxicated woman going for a swim at night is far less far-fetched than what a lot of the other theories require. But if foul play was involved, the two most plausible scenarios I can think of are targeted killing (related to her boyfriend's business dealings in the area, or any other things they had gotten involved in), or she got into a physically vulnerable position with another person where they were able to kill her without her having a chance to make much noise (consensual sexual encounter, going for a swim together). Maybe an affair with another passenger who feared she would tell his partner? (Again, it's pretty far fetched compared to accidental drowning imo, and I'm not aware of any evidence they were involved in sketchy things or she was cheating.)
 
sng said:
I have not been to this island but have spent a fair amount of time on the island the tour leaves from, Caye Caulker, and have done snorkeling trips in the area, so I've been following this case.

Shark/gator attack or rogue wave - highly unlikely. The sharks in the area are non aggressive and attacks are incredibly rare. The island is 20 miles offshore and doesn't appear to have much vegetation or habitat for gators. Belize beaches do not really have waves as they break at the barrier reef.

However, there are plenty of other dangers in the water. For one, the Belize cayes are full of coral which is incredibly sharp - it's easy to cut yourself and lose enough blood to get weak and disoriented, which could lead to a bad outcome even in shallow water. And this island is very close to the barrier reef which is surrounded by very strong currents. I'm a strong swimmer and thought it was going to slam me into the reef a few times while snorkeling. It's very common for ocean-inexperienced people to not realize how close to shore the dangerous currents start and assume they are safe because the water was so calm a few steps back. Once caught in a current, you can get slammed against a reef, disoriented in the dark, exhaust yourself trying to fight it so you can't tread water to wait for help. Honestly, it would be very easy to die in the water even if she wasn't intoxicated.

I know the family said she doesn't swim, but she was going through a lot and maybe she decided to face her fears - especially if she was under the influence of alcohol, a manic episode, prescription drugs, or whatever else caused the erratic behavior. (Bipolar disorder wouldn't onset at her age, but it's not unheard of for people with Bipolar II to go undiagnosed, and a manic or hypomanic episode would make her far more likely to take all kinds of risks like swimming and drinking.) Or maybe she had been getting over her water fears already, since she had been in Belize for a month? Her instagram had a picture of a waterslide into the ocean.

I don't think it's suspicious that a guard would be telling people not to walk around at night. There are many ways that drunk people walking around in the dark surrounded by water could hurt themselves and they don't want to get sued or have to interrupt the trip to take someone to the hospital. I don't see this as evidence of anything more nefarious. I also just don't think that randomly witnessing a drug exchange makes sense - there are plenty of uninhabited islands with more vegetation cover for them to meet on, and it's unlikely that she would be able to accurately describe anyone she saw in the dark, so killing her and drawing American attention would be riskier than letting her go.

I feel like a water accident is the Occam's Razor explanation. Even with the fear of water, an intoxicated woman going for a swim at night is far less far-fetched than what a lot of the other theories require. But if foul play was involved, the two most plausible scenarios I can think of are targeted killing (related to her boyfriend's business dealings in the area, or any other things they had gotten involved in), or she got into a physically vulnerable position with another person where they were able to kill her without her having a chance to make much noise (consensual sexual encounter, going for a swim together). Maybe an affair with another passenger who feared she would tell his partner? (Again, it's pretty far fetched compared to accidental drowning imo, and I'm not aware of any evidence they were involved in sketchy things or she was cheating.)
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Welcome to Websleuths, sng, and thank you for this fabulous post!

One small detail. Her sister didn't say that Alison doesn't swim. She said she's afraid to swim in the ocean.
http://www.7newsbelize.com/sstory.php?nid=51730

Looking forward to hearing more from you. :) MOO
 
Hello - There is a very interesting article on 7NewsBelize about Alison. I don't know that I can link it, but if interested go there and read. It is about a woman who met the boyfriend in a bar and he was drunk and had some interesting (to say the least) things to say. MOO. Katt
 
katsrfun said:
Hello - There is a very interesting on 7NewsBelize about Alison. I don't know that I can link it, but if interested go there and read. It is about a woman who met the boyfriend in a bar and he was drunk and had some interesting (to say the least) things to say. MOO. Katt
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It can be linked! Thanks for sharing! I had heard this video- which is imbedded in the story- a few days ago and find it extremely odd! http://www.7newsbelize.com/sstory.php?nid=51852
 
Miss415 said:
One does not need to carry cash when traveling. Ive traveled all around southern Mexico, Guatemala & Costa Rica and used local atms. I would take out enough cash until the next time I planned to be near banks.
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A lot of people do this. Not only do you not have to worry about carrying around too much cash; you get a better exchange rate as well.
 
Scrapper18 said:
TBH, I’m really not sure what exactly he is saying happened. Can anyone help clear it up for me?
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Sounds like he was told she had been seen digging in the sand. But he doubts the truth bc he knows of the dangers in the water, the currents. And rightfully asks why they didn’t wake him up so he could take care of her. Wrap her in a blanket then ? have sex with her. So the captain saying he brought her back to the tent (and him not waking up) probably a lie by the captain. We questioned why he would not have heard her coming back into the tent. Bc she was never brought back, I guess. Weather was rough. Seas. Wind. How she fell into the water is the key. What was she doing digging in the sand? Some cover up. But of what?
 
LarryLujack said:
Too funny you can link the video here but not from Facebook. Same video, different website = goofy.
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Because fb is SM not MSM. That’s why we’re always waiting until something hits MSM so it can be posted. It’s the rules! Can be frustrating but it does keep WS from becoming the dumpster fire that so much of SM is. :)
 
From that video this is what I took away:

(MOO)

Boyfriend believes she is dead at sea but how? No way she went swimming out there at midnight. People say they saw her up that night digging in the sand at roots. Well then why didn’t you wake me (boyfriend) up to get her and wrap her up in a blanket and tie her up until morning? She’s out at sea either to Alligator Caye or Honduras and either way sharks eat you up the whole way.
 
From that video I get a few things....

One is that he seems intoxicated. He is probably stressed and it's on his mind so he talks about it. Also the ocean is very loud at times. If it was rough he may have been sleeping and not heard her come back. If the captain did bring her back he may have just walked her close to her tent and watched her go in. Also if bf was drunk he may be less likely to hear her coming and going.

He says "Woman is Loco" That tells me she was not doing well in some way mentally or emotionally or both. He is wishing they would have woken him up to help, because he feels he could have kept her safe until they could get off the island.

I think it is believed that if you go in the water off the island there are strong currents and you are taken out to sea and that is what he believed happened.

All MOO.

*Edit for spelling errors
 
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Canadianmom2three said:
From that video I get a few things....

One is that he seems intoxicated. He is probably stressed and it's on his mind so he talks about it. Also the ocean is very loud at times. If it was rough he may have been sleeping and not heard her come back. If the captain did bring her back he may have just walked her close to her tent and watched her go in. Also if bf was drunk he may be less likely to hear her coming and going.

He does "Woman is Loco" That tells me she was not doing well in some way mentally or emotionally or both. He is wishing they would have woken him up to help, because he feels he could have kept her safe until they could get off the island.

I think it is believed that if you go in the water off the island there are strong currents and you are taken out to sea and that is what he believed happened.

All MOO.
Click to expand...

I took the woman is loco quote as her not being stable and has had previous instances of instability.
 
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