A Virginia man vanished while hiking the historic Andes mountains in Peru and hasn’t been heard from in over a month, sparking an intense search through the rugged terrain, his family says.
Ian Treger, a 29-year-old from Lexington, Va., last spoke with his family when he was traveling in the Peruvian city of Cusco on May 13, his mother Michelle Ludwig wrote on GoFundMe.
He had arrived in the South American country on May 11 for his 10-day trip and had been staying at an Airbnb when he wasn’t doing rigorous hikes on the “high-risk” mountain trails, family friend Donna Welch told WDBJ.
Welch recalled that Treger was last seen on surveillance footage leaving his Airbnb.
Treger – a teacher of English in Latin America – was reported missing, according to a missing persons report released by the Peruvian National Police on June 2.
Investigators have had no success in their search for Treger as they don’t know which of the several trails the missing tourist went on, according to the outlet.
Police in the Cusco region have launched multiple searches for Treger, including helicopter crews and teams on land with the High Mountain Rescue Units, according to Peruvian state news outlet Andina.
Officials with the local police have had a difficult time during the manhunt as Treger’s phone has gone offline.
“We don’t have reliable information on where the tourist has gone, and that complicates things for us,” a police spokesperson told the outlet as they tried to track Treger by his phone’s location. “Suddenly it’s turned off, which makes geolocation even more difficult.”
Peruvian officials seemed to narrow down their efforts to two locations, Vinicunca Rainbow Mountain and Choquequirao archaeological park, in southern Peru.
Treger is described as 5-foot-10, with a medium build and two fish tattoos on his right calf.
“Please help me fund costly private search & rescue efforts. The area is extremely large with hazards around every corner,” Ludwig wrote.
The frantic mother shared trail maps on the fundraiser that showed large areas of the land that traversed through with “high risk slopes” and “dangerous ravines.”
“Everyone who knows or has met Ian enjoys his sense of humor, appreciates his love of life, is fascinated by his many tales of travel, and will never forget his beautiful smile & bright blue eyes,” Ludwig said.
Ludwig has since traveled down to Peru and is working with the US Embassy to help search for her son, weeks after he went missing.
“The Trump administration has no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans, and the U.S. Embassy in Peru has been closely engaged since Mr. Treger’s disappearance was reported. We would refer you to Peruvian law enforcement for questions regarding their search effort,” a State Department spokesperson told WDBJ.
Officials in Peru have recovered Treger’s laptop from the Airbnb and are sending it back to the US, with hopes it has information on his whereabouts.
“We just love Ian and we’re just so worried of what has happened to Ian because it is not like him to not be in contact with his family and we are very concerned,” Welch said.
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