Missing U.S. Couple Spotted; Family Wants PROOF of LIFE

By Alicia Cruz
The Black Urban Times

The family of a U.S. couple that disappeared during a trip abroad says they're slightly relieved that their loved ones have reportedly been found alive, but they want proof.

Jamie Neal and Garrett Hand, of San Fransisco, California traveled to Peru in November 2012 and even detailed their daily adventures in the breathtaking South American country via social media posts.

Throughout the trip, Neal and Hand shared photographs of themselves in Argentina and Chile basking in the sun and fun of beaches and remote mountainous roads while riding their bikes.

Then, one day in January, the posts stopped and no one could reach the couple on their cell phones.

Despite phone calls from U.S. Embassy personnel in Peru and the country's interior ministry saying the couple have been seen, but cannot be reached, the family remains suspicious.

"Let me reiterate," wrote Francine Fitzgerald, Garrett Hand's mother. "Until we have PROOF OF LIFE, we cannot celebrate these rumors and sightings."

According to a CNN article, the tourism ministry located the couple through police, who received a report from a clinic in the town of Angoteros after sending out a nationwide alert about Hand and Neal's disappearance.

Peruvian officials say the couple cannot be reached at this time because the pair are currently in a remote, region of the Peruvian Amazon, which is difficult to access.

A security message received by the U.S. Embassy in Lima approximately two weeks ago warning that a criminal organization planned to kidnap U.S. citizen tourists in the Cusco area does not seem to concern the Peruvian government.

They have continued to assure the American Embassy that the California couple's disappearance has nothing to do with any kidnapping or other criminal activity.

Jose Luis Silva, Peru's tourism minister did, however, express concern about the negative impact the news of the missing couple would affect tourism in the country.

"These two young people have fallen in love with Peru," Silva said. "They have visited off-the-beaten-path places and it seems like they're having a blast -- so much so that they have forgotten to communicate with their families."

But Hand's family isn't buying that...yet.

"Proof of life is my son's voice on the phone and a picture of him holding the missing poster," said Fitzgerald.

RELATED
Learn About Beautiful Peru 
Guide to Peru
Culture of This Beautiful Peruvian Nation