Woman vanishes after returning from around the world trip
Leanne Hecht Bearden disappeared on a walk near her in-laws' house in Texas
The family of a Colorado woman who vanished after she returned home from traveling around the world says they are exploring all possibilities behind her disappearance, including whether or not she was abducted.
Leanne Bearden, 33, vanished on January 17 after she left a relative’s home in Garden Ridge, Texas, to go for a walk. She returned to the U.S. recently after a two-year-trek across several continents with her husband, Josh, which was chronicled in a blog she wrote.
Garrett Stethens, a friend of the family and their spokesman, told FoxNews.com that Leanne said to Josh that she would only be gone for an hour, but she never returned.
“There are no clues as to where she went,” Stethens said about her disappearance. “It was completely out of the blue. It was mysterious. It’s baffling.”
Since Leanne vanished, her family and friends have launched all-out searches for her, going on day hikes, hiring private helicopters and using a bloodhound to try to track her scent.
A missing-persons poster on a website created by the family says she was last seen wearing a dark T-shirt, jeans and hiking boots, and might have been carrying a backpack.
On Saturday, local and state police also joined in on the search efforts, along with the Texas Rangers and the Texas Search and Rescue Organization. The group combed around 25 square miles with a dozen K-9 units, ATV’s, and more than 100 volunteers, Stethens said, but called off their search the next day after nothing was found.
However, the family is still pushing on, hoping to find Leanne.
Stethens said more hikes were scheduled for Monday and there have been searches for Leanne every day since January 17.
“We’re not going to stop just because they did,” Stethens told FoxNews.com.
Leanne left the house without her cellphone and there has been no activity on her credit cards.
Authorities are not considering Josh Bearden as a suspect in her disappearance.
“While we are very concerned for Ms. Bearden’s welfare, there is no indication at this time that this is criminal in nature,” the Garden Ridge Police Department said in a statement.
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Asked if Leanne could have ventured off to a far-away place, based on her experience with traveling, Stethens said it was a possibility.
“She was a seasoned traveler,” he said. “The possibility is that maybe she did.”
Stethens added that the family is considering every possible scenario, including an abduction.
Leanne Bearden was supposed to fly home to Denver on Jan. 28 with her husband.
“The fact that she was not found encourages us to believe that she still survives and will eventually be reunited with us,” Leanne’s family wrote on a Facebook page Saturday. “We deeply appreciate your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.”
Anyone with information about Leanne Bearden’s whereabouts is urged to call the Garden Ridge Police Department at 210-651-6441 or the Heidi Search Center at 210-650-0428.
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