Ecuador - August Reiger, 18, US student, Banos, 16 June 2013

[PoirotryInMotion]

My guess is that the Snowden thing will actually HELP the diplomacy involved in August's case. In order to make it seem like they're purely in the Snowden thing for principle, the Ecuadorian government may go out of their way to show how cooperative they are in August's case. "See how helpful we are? We didn't grant Snowden asylum just to thumb our noses at the US! We love the US. We've done A, B, C and D to help find this missing American boy."

I think you may be right...seems they are now offering a reward for his return:

ECUADOR – The Ecuadorian government is putting out a reward for the safe return of an Oklahoma student who has been missing in South America for over a week.
http://kfor.com/2013/06/25/reward-offered-for-safe-return-of-okla-student-missing-in-ecuador/

 

[katydid23]

I honestly have NO CLUE what to think in this case. NONE of the options make much sense. I do know there are rebel political groups that do kidnap people, but he was on a hike just minutes ahead of his parents. And nobody has taken credit or asked for ransom yet. So I don't think he was kidnapped.

Being a valedictorian, he is obviously very, very intelligent. I do think he has the smarts to plan his own 'escape' if he desired. But I don't think he would do that to his parents with them being right there behind him. That is a pretty cruel way to set that up. I hope he did not do that.

I don't think he got lost. But maybe he did try to go off the beaten path to sit on a cliff and smoke a joint or something. And fell off, and remains hidden.

 

[necco]

There are four reasons I can think of that he could be kidnapped but no one has asked for ransom yet:
-Paramilitaries aren't always very quick to make their demands as they may be waiting for orders from higher up
-They may still be marching him someplace (There are cases where groups like ELN and FARC have made people walk for days and days and days)
-He escaped from them somewhere deep in the forest
-Something went wrong and he ended up dead in the kidnappers' presence

 

[katydid23]

There are four reasons I can think of that he could be kidnapped but no one has asked for ransom yet:
-Paramilitaries aren't always very quick to make their demands as they may be waiting for orders from higher up
-They may still be marching him someplace (There are cases where groups like ELN and FARC have made people walk for days and days and days)
-He escaped from them somewhere deep in the forest
-Something went wrong and he ended up dead in the kidnappers' presence

Good point. Maybe he is still marching somewhere. I hope that is what the delay is. I'd hate to think that young brilliant kid would be killed by the rebels. So sad to consider even. :frown:

 

[cluciano63]

The alleged sighting could be entirely false and he could be someplace on the side of that mountain still, having fallen.

 

[missgulfsouth]

He had no money and no water.

At that elevation, someone hiking who was used to OKC's altitude would be SUCKING down water like it was going out of style.

He didn't just ditch his family. Not without water. Not without money.

Do we know that he didn't have a backpack, where he might have had a hat for disguise purposes, maybe even scissors, money, water? I could see a scenario where he might slip into the woods and then once his parents and the group went past him, he got on the trail and backtracked down and met up with someone who would help him facilitate an escape. It's as plausible as being kidnapped, IMO. Just because he had everything going for him doesn't mean he would never do that. Those words have been said by EVERYONE whose loved one has in fact, run away. Those words are said by every killers family, too. People don't like to imagine their loved one hurting them like that.

 

[lucky181]

from OK newsman:

Michael Konopasek ‏@MikeKonopasek 3h
Reiger family spokesperson says reports August being seen in a pickup truck could just be a rumor. But "still gives family hope."

https://twitter.com/MikeKonopasek

 

[necco]

Do we know that he didn't have a backpack, where he might have had a hat for disguise purposes, maybe even scissors, money, water? I could see a scenario where he might slip into the woods and then once his parents and the group went past him, he got on the trail and backtracked down and met up with someone who would help him facilitate an escape. It's as plausible as being kidnapped, IMO. Just because he had everything going for him doesn't mean he would never do that. Those words have been said by EVERYONE whose loved one has in fact, run away. Those words are said by every killers family, too. People don't like to imagine their loved one hurting them like that.

Yes. According to MSM, we know that.

"He didn't have anything with him, no money, no water," Reiger said.
http://www.okcfox.com/story/22638527/missing-okc-valedictorian-theyve-found-nothing-so-far

 

[lucky181]

ABC interview with his parents. (FYI His mother is from Syria) They had taken a picture of him before he walked ahead and I assume that was the photo shown in the video.
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/okl...-disappears-hiking-ecuador-kidnapped-19491617

 

[Davia18]

ABC interview with his parents. (FYI His mother is from Syria) They had taken a picture of him before he walked ahead and I assume that was the photo shown in the video.
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/okl...-disappears-hiking-ecuador-kidnapped-19491617

After watching this video and seeing the trail. I have a feeling he may have heard something or something caught his eye and he got close to an edge and he slipped and fell. It may have happened so fast he didn't have time to scream, he just started grabbing to stop himself. The best home is he is someone how alive still. I don't believe he was kidnapped or ran away. IMO

 

[findaugust]

Their government likes to say there are no kidnappings in that area, but a quick google search tells a different story. There are many fewer kidnappings in that area than the capital, Quito, or the Northern Border with Columbia. But, more than none. In fact, this guy from Tulsa says he was kidnapped in 1993, and it does sometimes take months for kidnappers to contact the family. http://www.koco.com/news/oklahomane...nd/-/11777584/20699462/-/wcok4tz/-/index.html
As for the reappearing question, "Did he leave voluntarily?" I become exhausted exclaiming, "no!" A quote from his mother, “The one thing we know for sure is August would not leave his family willingly,” said Randa Reiger, August Reiger's mother. “That is not even a possibility. He has no money. We have his passport. He bought jewelry for his girlfriend and left it at the hotel. He has no extra clothes, not a single dollar.” Who runs away in a foreign country without so much as a dollar? He had money in the hotel he could have taken with him and did not. He has been gone for 10 days. He would have contacted his family to let them know he was okay if he could. He is 18. If he wanted to be gone they couldn't make him return, he is an adult. And that is just the actual evidence. I know August personally and know his character, something that even most detectives would take into consideration. For what purpose would he leave? Kicks? Kicks are hard to get with no money.
I, too, felt the kidnapping scenario hard to believe. But the mountain was searched and searched with humans and dogs, and the parents and authorities are convinced he isn't there. That really only leaves foul play.
The plateau at the top with the road leading away is chilling.

 

[findaugust]

Read a few posts back that August scheduled the Amazon trip. I wonder if he had discussed with his parents that he wanted to go alone? Maybe he just left right after the hike so he could do the Amazon trip on his own?

-------- No, he did not. Also, if he went on his own, it was only a 3 day trip. He's been gone for 10 days.

This case is getting a little ridiculous. MOO

PS I just do not see it being an abduction. After watching so many videos of the town, it makes no sense. Most of the tourists go there for the healing springs coming from the volcano, so why would kidnappers go to that area for that purpose?

Tourists are often targeted because if you can afford to travel, you have more money that most Ecuadorians. That is true almost any place.

 

[hannah1988]

Just throwing this out there as a possibilty - maybe someone pushed him off the edge of the trail.

That being said, I have a good feeling that he'll be found alive.

 

[necco]

Thanks for updating us, findaugust.

Kidnapping seems incredible to people unfamiliar with the workings and politics of Latin America, but those who have been there, know that there are dangers there that are different than those in the US.

Of one thing, I am certain. August didn't run away. If the family is satisfied with the ground search on the mountain, you're right, the only thing left is foul play.

 

[beachlvr0810]

I thought about him all day today. I cannot begin to imagine what his family and friends are feeling right now. My heart goes out to all of them. I pray he will found alive!!

 

[Janeumayer]

After watching the video with the parents, I do not believe you can completely search the whole side of the mountain. He could be entangled in the tree top and no one would be able to see him. Dogs are great, but depending on who trains them, sometimes they cannot help. The vegetation is extremely abundant. MOO

 

[wfgodot]

I agree with janeumayer above, and I will also add that the "disappeared voluntarily" theory should not be taken off the table merely because those close to him would not expect it of him. WS threads provide many examples of those who have done things which surprised those close to them. It is impossible to know entirely the thoughts of another.

 

[necco]

I agree with janeumayer above, and I will also add that the "disappeared voluntarily" theory should not be taken off the table merely because those close to him would not expect it of him. WS threads provide many examples of those who have done things which surprised those close to them. It is impossible to know entirely the thoughts of another.

I concur that it shouldn't be taken off the table because of what the family says he would or wouldn't do. I've taken it off the table for other reasons.

I'm about 50/50 split between accident and foul play.

 

[lucky181]

Here's a travel blog from someone who took walked the trail. Her pictures show a couple houses on the slopes and I think you get a better feel for the trail. The one labeled Hillside Farm 2 shows the cross at the top of the hill. Although there are open fields along the way, there still seem to be some dense areas on the slopes.

http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-bl...shiggins/11/1261946782/filename=the-trail.jpg

 

[missgulfsouth]

I'm trying to imagine kidnappers laying in wait at that very moment, as if they knew that August would walk ahead on his own. Not only did he have to disappear without a trace, but so did the people who took him. I don't think it would be a one person job.