American Mom Missing After Vanishing in the Middle of the Night While on Vacation in Belize
An American woman has disappeared while on vacation with her boyfriend in Belize.
Alison MacKenzie, 43, was on a three-day catamaran tour set with Paige Rote, 58, when she went missing Friday night, according to The Daily Courier.
The mom of two was camping on an island called Rendezvous Caye with 14 other tourists and three tour guides from Raggamuffin Tours when she vanished, news station Channel 5 Belize reports.
Rote reported his girlfriend missing when he woke up on Saturday morning and MacKenzie was nowhere to be found, Hilberto Romero, the deputy head of National Crimes Investigation Branch, told Channel 5.
MacKenzie was last seen on the island around 10 p.m., authorities said.
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The police currently do not consider Rote to be a suspect, according to Channel 5 Belize.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State confirmed to PEOPLE that it is aware of reports of a missing U.S. citizen in Belize. The representative told PEOPLE that the department works closely with local authorities in their search efforts whenever a U.S. citizen is reported missing.
Raggamuffin Tours, the company who had set up the catamaran tour, told PEOPLE in a statement that they are “cooperating fully with law enforcement officers in their investigation into this incident.”
“We have given the Belize Police Department comprehensive details of all passengers and met with our crew. We are aware that extensive interviews have been conducted by the Police at Rendezvous Caye and in Caye Caulker,” the company said. “Ragamuffin Tours Limited is operated by a Caye Caulker family and as a family, we are deeply distressed and concerned as to the whereabouts and well being of Alison Mackenzie.”
In a Facebook post, MacKenzie’s mother wrote that their family is “beyond devastated” by news of her disappearance.
“We have received 3 different stories about what happened that morning. None of them consistent with the others,” Cherie MacKenzie wrote. “We are getting nowhere finding out where she is. It has been 48 hours now, and not only missing, but feared no longer alive.”
MacKenzie’s sister told Channel 5 Belize that she and her mother do not believe Rote was involved in the disappearance and that he is “just as distraught” as the rest of the family.
She said MacKenzie had been in Belize since December following a death in the family.
“She was just coming there because our father passed away last year and then our step-father passed away two months ago,” MacKenzie’s sister told the outlet. “So, she was just going there to try to get a break from life here. Just take a little break from things and regroup and find some peace for a little while.”
