The family of a Chicago woman who has gone missing in The Bahamas is seeking public assistance in their efforts to find her. According to CNN, 41-year-old Taylor Casey had traveled to the Caribbean nation for a yoga retreat, and her family in a statement said that they are “deeply concerned” for her “safety and well-being.”
The Royal Bahamas Police Force said that Casey was last seen around Paradise Island on June 19. Taylor is said to have traveled to the country for a yoga retreat being organized by Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat. The organizers in a statement said they have since contacted police in the Caribbean nation and requested that they investigate her disappearance.
The retreat in the statement said that it became aware of Casey’s disappearance on Thursday when she was absent from morning classes. The organization also said the last time Taylor was seen was on June 19 evening, adding that it had since “advised the US Embassy as well as Taylor Casey’s family.”
Casey’s family in a statement said the missing 41-year-old has been practicing yoga for 15 years and had gone to the retreat to “fulfill a long-term goal of deepening her practice.” “Eager to return to Chicago, she looked forward to sharing her newfound knowledge and experience with others,” her family said.
Her family also described her as a “light-skinned Black woman, approximately 5 feet 10 inches tall and 145 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes.” The statement said she has natural hair and usually covers it with a durag.
“We are deeply concerned for Taylor’s safety and well-being,” Casey’s mother, Colette Seymore, said in the statement. “We love Taylor and want her home.” Seymore also said she believes her daughter is in danger because “she was eager to share her yoga retreat experience with others upon her return.” She said her daughter “would never disappear like this.”
Casey’s family in the statement said that Taylor’s mother is part of a contingent traveling to Paradise Island and Nassau to “coordinate with local authorities.” In January, the US State Department in a Level 2 travel advisory warned Americans traveling to The Bahamas to “exercise increased caution” as a result of crime, CNN reported.
“The majority of crime occurs on New Providence (Nassau) and Grand Bahama (Freeport) islands,” the warning states. “In Nassau, practice increased vigilance in the ‘Over the Hill’ area (south of Shirley Street) where gang-on-gang violence has resulted in a high homicide rate primarily affecting the local population.
“Violent crime, such as burglaries, armed robberies, and sexual assaults, occur in both tourist and non-tourist areas. Be vigilant when staying at short-term vacation rental properties where private security companies do not have a presence.”
