49 Year Old U.S. Diplomat James Hogan Missing in Curacao Since September 24, 2009 (UPDATE: DNA Match to Bloody Clothes)
49 year old US diplomat James Hogan ha been missing on the Caribbean Island of Curacao since Thursday, September 24, 2009; however, was officially reported a day later.
Rescuers searching for a U.S. diplomat led sniffer dogs over beaches Wednesday as technicians prepared to comb the sea floor with a robotic device for traces of a vice consul who vanished on this Dutch Caribbean island last week.
Curacao prosecutors said James Hogan, 49, was reported missing Friday morning by his wife. He apparently left his home to go for a walk the night before.
On Wednesday, searchers scoured coastal areas for Hogan after passers-by found blood-spattered clothes on Baya Beach. A spokeswoman for the prosecutor’s office, Ludmila Vicento, told Radio Netherlands Worldwide that the clothes match descriptions given by his wife.
No trace of missing US consul James Hogan
“Mr Hogan’s wife reported her husband missing on Friday morning. We’re not excluding any scenarios. The clothes found match the description given by Mrs Hogan. The area where Mr Hogan used to take walks has been combed, as well as the area where the traces were found. We are being helped by the US Navy, which happened to have a ship with a helicopter in the vicinity of Curaçao. No FBI agents are involved in the investigation at this point, but US agencies may become active here if we invite them. The Netherlands has sent a couple of specialist detectives with search dogs.”
Earlier disappearances are still fresh in the memory of the Netherlands Antillean people. Dutch trainee nurse Marlies van der Kouwe was killed on Bonaire, while on Aruba US teenager Natalee Holloway disappeared without trace.
UPDATE I: Witnesses saw missing US diplomat before he disappeared.
Tips considered credible began trickling in after police on the Dutch Caribbean island posted fliers with numbers that people could call anonymously, according to police spokesman Reggie Huggins.
“We have talked to quite a lot of people that one way or another have helped,” he said, declining to release further details.
UPDATE II: The Bloody Clothes Found on Beach in Curacao Belong to Missing James Hogan
There is a DNA match to the bloody clothes found on the beach in Curacao and that of missing US vice consul James Hogan. The Netherlands forensic institute has confirmed that there is a DNA match.
Curacao – The DNA research by the Netherlands forensic institute confirmed that blood traces found on clothing and beach of Curacao belong to missing US vice consul James Hogan.
The United States said Thursday it has been searching for the US vice consul in the Dutch Caribbean island of Curacao since his wife reported him missing last Friday.
The local authorities announced that a mobile telephone had been found in the sea.
Curacao confirms blood traces from James Hogan
The latest statement issued by the Public Prosecutor’s Office for the Dutch Antilles confirmed that blood traces found on clothing and on the ground nearby are a match for Mr Hogan, who went missing eight days ago. The local authorities announced that a mobile telephone had been found in the sea and was being investigated further.
An intensive search has been underway for Mr Hogan since his wife reported him missing last Friday. The local police are getting support from both The Netherlands and US agencies, and the American and Dutch navies are also involved.