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

[cluciano63]

"There have been no demands for ransom, but authorities have said that is not unusual in cases like this one."

I don't understand the logic of a kidnapping without a ransom after all this time - doesn't sound good... .

Quoted is the article mentioned up post, link again to it:
http://www.greenfieldreporter.com/v...fa47333c1b4226064/OK--Missing-Student-Ecuador

Really. What would be the point? I cannot imagine kidnappers caring, feeding, etc. him all of this time.

 

[wfgodot]

Well, it's been seven months plus and I never particularly bought into the "delayed ransom demand" thing.

He either i) fell off the mountain and body is undiscovered;
.............ii) left of his own accord, or
............iii) was murdered

Going with i) above. Even well-searched areas will fail at times to give up their dead.

 

[Nugget]

Well, it's been seven months plus and I never particularly bought into the "delayed ransom demand" thing.

He either i) fell off the mountain and body is undiscovered;
.............ii) left of his own accord, or
............iii) was murdered

Going with i) above. Even well-searched areas will fail at times to give up their dead.

I agree. The circumstance (hiking, disappeared quickly, really no where else to go IMO) leads to that conclusion. In my heart I want him to be alive and on an adventure. In my head I feel he fell and won't be found.

And that's depressing.

 

[JeannaT]

I agree. The circumstance (hiking, disappeared quickly, really no where else to go IMO) leads to that conclusion. In my heart I want him to be alive and on an adventure. In my head I feel he fell and won't be found.

And that's depressing.

I think he's there and has made a life for himself. I think if he cut his hair he wouldn't look very memorable - and could fit in. The fact that he so wanted to go there makes me think he wanted to stay there.

 

[Nugget]

I think he's there and has made a life for himself. I think if he cut his hair he wouldn't look very memorable - and could fit in. The fact that he so wanted to go there makes me think he wanted to stay there.

I want to believe that, but I can't. How did he get away so quickly with his family so close behind him? Why would he do that to them? Obviously the second question is up for major speculation. But I can't think through the logistics of HOW? And why wouldn't he choose to sneak out during the night or slip away when the family wasn't so close?

Did he dive into a bush and wait for them to leave? I just can't work that out in my head.

 

[JeannaT]

I want to believe that, but I can't. How did he get away so quickly with his family so close behind him? Why would he do that to them? Obviously the second question is up for major speculation. But I can't think through the logistics of HOW? And why wouldn't he choose to sneak out during the night or slip away when the family wasn't so close?

Did he dive into a bush and wait for them to leave? I just can't work that out in my head.

I don't know. It's just kind of a mystery. He seems like a very unusual guy. I keep thinking of the guy in "Into the Wild" who just wanted to disappear into the brush. They seem like similar people.

Also if I remember correctly there was a witness who saw him riding off in the back of a truck. Who knows if that was real, but really, with his very long hair and thin build he was kind of an unusual looking guy.

 

[Nugget]

I don't know. It's just kind of a mystery. He seems like a very unusual guy. I keep thinking of the guy in "Into the Wild" who just wanted to disappear into the brush. They seem like similar people.

Also if I remember correctly there was a witness who saw him riding off in the back of a truck. Who knows if that was real, but really, with his very long hair and thin build he was kind of an unusual looking guy.

He does seem unique looking but if I didn't know him or see him up close, any white guy with long hair could be him. Or any white guy out of place could be him. It's hard to know what the person who reported it really saw.

I want you to be right, of course. I want to be wrong because it would mean he is alive out there.

 

[OldSteve]

I think he's there and has made a life for himself. I think if he cut his hair he wouldn't look very memorable - and could fit in. The fact that he so wanted to go there makes me think he wanted to stay there.

As someone who took off to be on his own when I was about his age, I can tell you it's near impossible to do - in a week or two your mind begin plays tricks on you, even you are a place that you really love.
Thoughts of your family and their voices play in your mind in ways that pull you back.. and the though that you are causing them hurt, hurts you...

 

[Elainera]

I want to believe that, but I can't. How did he get away so quickly with his family so close behind him? Why would he do that to them? Obviously the second question is up for major speculation. But I can't think through the logistics of HOW? And why wouldn't he choose to sneak out during the night or slip away when the family wasn't so close?

Did he dive into a bush and wait for them to leave? I just can't work that out in my head.

bbm - Not very difficult I think. The path they were on went up the hill from the right and down on the left - he just had to keep on walking. It's not like he had to go down the same way they went up. He was ahead of his brother and parents, so if he had simply started running to the top and then continue back down, by the time they reached the top he would be well out of sight. And by the time the family had finished their initial search for him on top of the hill he could have been long gone, out of the village.

 

[CatFancier]

I don't know. It's just kind of a mystery. He seems like a very unusual guy. I keep thinking of the guy in "Into the Wild" who just wanted to disappear into the brush. They seem like similar people.

Also if I remember correctly there was a witness who saw him riding off in the back of a truck. Who knows if that was real, but really, with his very long hair and thin build he was kind of an unusual looking guy.

I would love to see this. I can't think of a case where "Into the Wild" has been mentioned (often!) where they haven't turned up dead. Hoping he is alive.

 

[azure]

I would love to see this. I can't think of a case where "Into the Wild" has been mentioned (often!) where they haven't turned up dead. Hoping he is alive.

I think that when people reference that book, they also forget that Christopher McCandless died during his own journey. Sadly, even those who attempt to go off the grid are usually unprepared and often end up in danger or deceased.

I'm with those who think August met his demise on the mountain. It is terribly sad, but I hope his remains are found so that his family can have closure.

 

[FigTree]

:bump: Thinking of you August.
I hope you are safe somewhere.
I hope there is a day soon that you can come home to your family.
In my thoughts.

 

[beachlvr0810]

Any new updates?

 

[Janeumayer]

Found this. He has been added to a website called Disappeared in Euador. It's in Spanish.

Here's the link for the article: http://desendor.org/un-joven-estadounidense-esta-extraviado-desde-junio-pasado/

I had never seen the details of what he was wearing or maybe I forgot but it says blue shirt, blue sweatshirt, dark pants, a black windbreaker or rain coat and beige Converse sneakers.

 

[beachlvr0810]

I can't imagine how his family is feeling.

 

[Jacie Estes]

I think that when people reference that book, they also forget that Christopher McCandless died during his own journey. Sadly, even those who attempt to go off the grid are usually unprepared and often end up in danger or deceased.

I'm with those who think August met his demise on the mountain. It is terribly sad, but I hope his remains are found so that his family can have closure.

Reiger may have fallen prey to bandits in the jungle, rather than trying to 'survive' there. It is believed that McCandless died from exposure to ODAP, a neurotoxin similar to what caused the deaths of some in the concentration camps. I am glad you mentioned McCandless, a fascinating case and good movie. Richard Proenneke was a success case in living as a survivalist.

http://www.thepoisonreview.com/2014/01/06/into-the-wild-did-a-neurotoxin-chris-mccandless/

Alone in the Wilderness - YouTube

 

[Schmaley]

Bumping for August.

 

[Seajay]

Hard to believe after all this time there is no news about August. At first I thought maybe he took off on his own, but now, I'm in the camp that he is still on the mountain somewhere and his body still hasn't been found yet. At this point, whatever the case is, his family needs closure. They need a resolution and they need to know what happened to their loved one. I'm hoping that they at least get that.

 

[lucky181]

I think he's on the mountain too. His father made this statement back in June. The mountain was searched, but I don't think they could have gone everywhere since it's so steep and there would be no seasonal changes to expose areas.

"It's just so thick with vegetation that you could slide [up to] 100 feet down and be caught in [a] canopy," Chris said. "It would be impossible to see you [and] really hard for anybody to find you."

http://www.news9.com/story/22659021...monitoring-case-of-missing-okla-valedictorian

 

[Hap]

I feel so badly for this family. He may never be found if he did fall off the mountain, which seems very likely. Even now, would there be anything left to find...