Bahamas - Taylor Casey, 41, Chicago, last seen in at yoga retreat, Paradise Island, Nassau, 19 Jun 2024

[opensoulsurgery]

Search for missing woman Taylor Casey expanded

The search continues for missing Chicago woman Taylor Casey, who was last seen in The Bahamas on June 19

www.newsnationnow.com

To Note:
-local police began to use drone technology to scour for any signs on the western end of Paradise Island.
-Divers have also taken to the water

-prior to her disappearance had been sending family photos of herself on the beach.

Then, all of a sudden, she just vanished.

Wonder when her last photo was sent?

Western end of the island. Yeah, sounds like she was down by the rocks. I wonder if that's where they found her phone.

 

[PommyMommy]

Search for Chicago woman who went missing in the Bahamas expands: Police

The search has expanded for Taylor Casey, a Chicago woman who went missing while on a yoga retreat in the Bahamas last week, police said.

abcnews.go.com

The search for Casey -- which has involved drones, canines and divers -- has extended beyond the immediate area of the retreat to other parts of the island, Royal Bahamas Police Force Chief Superintendent Chrislyn Skippings told reporters Wednesday afternoon. Investigators are also checking surveillance cameras, she said.

Skippings said it is too early in the investigation to say if any foul play is suspected.

I don't remember seeing this before. Maybe I missed it, but I didn't realize the course lasted so long. And we don't know how long into this "four to five weeks" she had been there?

From the link:

Skippings was unable to say when Casey arrived in the Bahamas for the retreat, though said it was taking place over four to five weeks.

 

[PommyMommy]

I realize there are numerous possibilities as to why Casey didn't respond to this text, but I'm still curious what time it was sent... MOO

https://wgntv.com/news/chicago-news/search-continues-for-chicago-woman-who-went-missing-in-the-bahamas-phone-reportedly-located-in-water/

“My grandma actually texted her Wednesday (June 19), and no response, but we didn’t think anything of it,” Conard said. “Thursday (June 20), we got a call from the yoga retreat saying that Taylor hadn’t been seen.”

 

[nells]

I pray Taylor is found soon.

 

[tarabull]

Snipped...
...“I believe Taylor is in danger because she was eager to share her yoga retreat experience with others upon her return,” Seymore wrote in the news release. “Taylor would never disappear like this.”

 

[Lilibet]

I also think it's unrealistic for the general public who follows missing persons or family members to think everyone will stop what they are doing, either tourists or residents and refocus their day to churn out missing posters, etc. I mean, really, if someone went missing in Paris, New York or London, what do you expect everyone to do? When you are family members of a missing person you become a member of an exclusive club that no one wants to be a member of. I'm sure these same people have been aware of other missing people and are not invested in their disappearance.

Umm no, I don’t expect anyone to stop what they’re doing and “churn out missing posters”, especially residents of NYC, Paris or London. Of course that is unrealistic. I said nothing of the kind. You missed my point.

If you read the post I was responding to, I was pointing out why, in my experience, some cases are “adopted” by a community and some aren’t. The examples in my post were all small communities that often come together to help in these situations as the Redding area did for Sherri Papini. That’s why I was surprised at the silence and inaction for Stephanie Warner ten years ago.

My point was that it fits the pattern of ignoring most average looking middle aged women who go missing, such as Stephanie and Taylor, but rallying for attractive and/or younger missing women. A pretty teenager disappeared in my town and there was a candlelight vigil downtown and a protest at the police station and much local news coverage. (She turned out to have run away for three months.) So I saw the disparity firsthand FWIW. I hope this clarifies my post for you.

Much of the help provided is in response to family involvement, so Taylor’s mother is doing well to be involved, and should expect nothing but be grateful for anything. And if Taylor was swept out to sea her efforts won’t make a difference. But it will likely be hard for Taylor’s mom to accept that it was an accident if it was.
JMO

 

[Lilibet]

Snipped...
...“I believe Taylor is in danger because she was eager to share her yoga retreat experience with others upon her return,” Seymore wrote in the news release. “Taylor would never disappear like this.”

The family believes that Taylor wouldn't leave and disappear voluntarily because she was eager to share her retreat experience with others. Therefore, she must be in danger (from someone).

She could have been abducted. But most of us are looking to the capricious ocean for answers. I don’t think her family is ready yet to consider the possibility that the ocean has taken her. I don’t blame them. At least if her disappearance is human-caused there is hope.

JMO

 

[PommyMommy]

I met with missing woman Taylor Casey's family in the Bahamas. They traveled from Chicago to search for the 41-year-old who vanished from a yoga retreat. Her phone last pinged in the ocean near Paradise Island. They say police in the Bahamas have the cell phone.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1806638463569059926

- Taylor arrived in the Bahamas June 3 per family.

 

[FoxxTraxx]

The water in the background of the video looks very inviting. I wonder if the cellphone was found in this area.

 

[LauraAnne]

There is not much information about her life, besides the poster who located the info that she's a facilitator for a health facility transgender support group. Interestingly, her mother never refers to her as "she", but rather, continuously says "Taylor". It doesn't seem she went on the retreat to become certified as a yoga instructor, but rather, to further immerse herself in her practice of Yoga. With a retreat lasting at least 4 weeks. A VERY long time for anyone who works full time, if she in fact, does.

It looks to me there's a LOT of reason to believe she might have purposely left, to try to find some kind of peace or do some soul-searching. It seems there's every reason to be hopeful she'll be found safe.

 

[tarabull]

FWIW...

https://www.state.gov/reports/2023-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/thebahamas/#:~:text=Discrimination%3A%20The%20August%202023%20Protection,only%20violence%20in%20heterosexual%20relationships.

 

[Cedars]

It doesn't seem she went on the retreat to become certified as a yoga instructor, but rather, to further immerse herself in her practice of Yoga.

Yes, just to add to this, many people take these 'teacher training' programs, in order to immerse themselves in yoga for a few solid weeks. It's like auditing a university course, you attend but don't have to pass exams, nor are you interested in getting a degree, or working in the field.

It probably also works out to be cheaper than staying at a resort in the Bahamas as a guest, for the same amount of time.

IMO, most people don't get enough time off to do this, it's often done during a period of life transition, ie divorce, job change...

JMO

 

[Cedars]

-prior to her disappearance had been sending family photos of herself on the beach.

Then, all of a sudden, she just vanished.

Wonder when her last photo was sent?

Interesting. To me, that suggests the possibility of attempting a tricky selfie that went wrong, ie lead to a fall, unconscious in the water, taken out by the tide...

JMO

 

[mlhenn]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1807144897482219791

June 29

 

[celinesleuth]

I wish there was a more established timeline of events leading up to her disappearance.
With the last text to her mom saying “look, I’m at the ocean” and then her phone being found in the ocean reads as if she drowned or was swept out to sea. I don’t know anything about tides so I don’t know if it’s realistic that Taylor’s body would go so far out and not wash up ashore. I’ve read the waters in this area are calm, and the weather has been fine. I’m still kinda inclined to think she could’ve been swept away - the ocean is unpredictable. And if Taylor was taking selfies, she could've easily lost her footing or gotten distracted.
Alternatively, her phone being found in the water could also be a result of a struggle, or someone throwing her phone into the sea as a means of disposal. I understand why investigators aren't sharing everything but I'd like to know if there were any witnesses in the area at the time.

 

[nhmemorymaker]

A friend went to a yoga retreat (not this one) and the day started pretty early. According to those at the retreat Taylor was seen at night on the 19th but didn't show up for class on the 20th. High tide on the 19th was at 6:59pm with the height of the tide at 3.28 feet. On the morning of the 20th it was at 7.20am with the height at 2.3 feet. So is it possible that Taylor went for a walk, either in the evening of the 19th and got caught in a riptide or undertow or early morning on the 20th before classes started? At this point in time, I'm not seeing her absence as related to foul play because there is no evidence to point us in that direction.

I can't tell you how many people go on vacation without ever doing any kind of investigation as to things that should matter to them. Like, are you aware that when you visit Serbia the alphabet is Cyrillic and restaurants may be only in that script? That lots of countries drive on the opposite side of the road? That there are sharks and beautiful beaches that are wildly popular (Cabo San Lucas) but powerful currents have claimed many lives of tourists? That paragliding or scuba diving in, lets say, Mexico means you are risking your life since most of those activities are an unregulated industry?

I know a lot of people get upset when they think local LE are ambivalent regarding investigating missing persons but they have a lot of experience dealing with tourists who are very inexperienced. Not to say that countries that rely on tourism as their lifeblood might be reluctant to make a big splash regarding missing persons but stats really do support their stance.

Everything in your post seems and feels accurate.
The number of deaths due to riptides has been painfully high this year. And it is really only local Florida press that covers all these cases.
So for the most part, people just don't realize how prevalent this is, anywhere on the Atlantic.

 

[PommyMommy]

JUN 30, 2024

Bahamas: FBI assisting in case of missing US woman | Loop Caribbean News

The Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) has sought assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation(FBI) in the ongoing search for Taylor Casey, an American woman who went missing here last week. The authorities said Casey, 41, from Chicago, Illi

caribbean.loopnews.com

[...]

National Security Minister Wayne Munroe confirmed the FBI’s involvement in the search for Casey stating that “They (the FBI) have made an extensive survey of the entire area using the drone technology that they have.

“I know they have used technology with regards to the cell phone of the individual. I know that they have interviewed people. I know they have met with a representative of the US government.”

Munroe said at this phase of the investigation, the FBI is only providing advice to the Bahamas police and expressed the hope that they will share everything they can to aid in the search for Casey.

[...]

 

[LooksSusToMe]

Taylor is pretty tall for a woman. I don’t think she would be the ideal kidnapping target. Are there a lot of sharks in the area? I’m just wondering why a body wouldn’t be found if she did fall in the ocean and swept under. That’s very sus that no one put up missing flyers, and the yoga retreat didn’t tell their other guests upon arrival that a guest was missing. Also I would want to ask her mom if she was a good swimmer.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

“We have engaged the resources of our law enforcement. We have gotten assistance from the law enforcement agency of the individual’s own country,” Munroe said, dismissing criticism that police are not doing enough to locate Casey

https://www.cbc.bb/news/caribbean-news/bahamas-fbi-assisting-in-case-of-missing-us-woman/

 

[RickshawFan]

Looking at those photos, there are a thousand ways to go missing: water, yachts, buildings, buildings buildings....