Danger's Blog, Cancun Casa,Living on Isla Time
In a Little Cafe on the Other Side of the Border, a Virtual Visitor's Blog on Cancun
Categories:

Archives:
Meta:
June 2009
S M T W T F S
« May   Jul »
 123456
78910111213
14151617181920
21222324252627
282930  
06/23/09
Missing in Cancun, Mexico; the Strange Case of Julia Howard
Filed under: Cancun Casa Blog, Cancun Tourism, Missing: Julia Howard
Posted by: Dangers @ 9:57 pm

 On Monday, June 15, 2009, Julia Howard and her family were just starting what they had hoped would be a relaxing tropical vacation in Cancun, Mexico at the beautiful Moon Palace Resort located on the Caribbean Sea just south of the Cancun Hotel Zone and 10 minutes away from the Cancun International Airport along the Cancun to Tulum Highway (#307). Little did anyone realize that the 77 year old Scottish Grandmother from Edinburgh, Scotland would mysteriously disappear from the hotel 12 hours into her stay there, having spent one night in her room after arriving from the U.K. the previous evening, leaving family and local officials mystified as to her whereabouts.


 According to press reports and published responses from her family, Julia Howard was with her family Monday morning and stated that she wanted to go for a walk, but would return to her room to retrieve a hat for the protection from the tropical sun before doing so, she left for her room, and has not been seen since. Searches of the vast Moon Palace complex in Cancun by Hotel Security personnel have yet to yield any clues to Julia Howard’s disappearance and it’s believed that she never made it back to her room as her sun hat was still in place there. Currently her family is rife with concern for the missing matriarch and seeking additional assistance from the British Embassy while continuing the search at the Moon Palace Resort. Of note, Julia Howard had visited the Moon Palace in the past and had a familiarity of the hotel grounds lending some doubt as to whether she could have just wandered off and become lost amongst the maze like atmosphere of the complex.

 Traveling with Julia Howard were family members, including her daughter Julia Brock, son Henry Harvey and his wife Glynnis. In the UK, other family members have pleaded for help from authorities there while trying to assist their family via Internet research to any and all avenues that might assist in finding their beloved missing family member. Among them, granddaughter Gill Greaves, whom has appeared on interviews in the Scottish Media as well as in press accounts attempting to gather information and critical contact points with multinational government representatives in both the UK and Mexico.

 Por Esto, a regional newspaper in Cancun reported in their June 23,2009 edition that Julia Howard’s son, Henry Harvey, was quoted by Scotland media at STV “We’ve have not had any contact with the Cancun Police, we’ve not had any contact at all, the hotel has been protecting it’s reputation, (they) seem to be hiding from us, we’ve been left in limbo. We are already believing that something unfortunate has happened. I can not understand how a 77 year old lady can vanish from the earth at a five star resort”. Por Esto further reported that the family has accused authorities in Cancun of doing little to assist in searching for their missing loved one and that the resort security personnel have no record of Ms. Howard ever leaving the resort.


 Most seasoned travelers familiar with the Moon Palace in Cancun would likely describe the resort as an upscale, all inclusive resort that is secluded amongst the tropical forest and mangroves fronting the Caribbean Sea. The complex is huge in scale and supports a multiple complex of sectioned hotel buildings, public auditoriums, a golf course and at last count 2,457 rooms. The Moon Palace is one of four flagged Palace Resorts in Cancun and part of a larger ownership of five hotel resorts in Cancun (including the Le Blanc Resort). Palace Resorts currently operates at least 12 major resorts in mostly Mexican and Caribbean destinations, and is predominantly owned by businessman, Jose Chapura as per Por Esto.


(Courtesy of DQR/ Jose Chapur Zahoul)

Additional off site links to media and video for this story can be found below from both Mexican and International sources, we request that those interested, republish this specific blog via direct copy along with attribution and hyperlink in an attempt to assist the family of Julia Howard in any way possible, including increased visibility and publicity in further attempts to locate her. Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Julia Howard should contact the Cancun Police Department, the Cancun Attorney General’s Office, the British Embassy in Mexico, and any other responsible agency including those in the UK.

http://www.poresto.net/quintana-roo/41418-anciana-perdida-toda-una-semana

http://www.thesun.co.uk/scotsol/homepage/news/2489471/Gran-vanishes-on-Mexico-hol.html

http://news.stv.tv/scotland/east-central/103612-edinburgh-grandmother-goes-missing-in-mexico/

http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/latestnews/Family-tell-of-nightmare-.5385902.jp

http://news.stv.tv/scotland/east-central/104118-growing-concern-for-missing-edinburgh-woman/

http://cancun-hotels.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g150807-i8-k2893410-l18894013-Missing_Edinburgh_Woman-Cancun_Yucatan_Peninsula.html

http://www.enfoqueradio.com.mx/?p=26175

http://radioquintanaroo.com/lleva-perdida-toda-una-semana-anciana-en-el-hotel-moon-palace-de-cancun/

4 comments