Could the missing American man Chris Velten be in Kenya?
– Chris Velten, an American national, left home for Mali to explore the west African terrain
– He went missing after six weeks following a meeting with a local who housed him
– He is believed to be in Kenya after missing for 13 years following a friend request he sent to a Kenyan conservationist
An American national who last left home to explore West Africa has been missing for 13 years.
According to Christian Velten’s sister, Hannah, he left home for Africa to emulate Mungo Park, a Scottish explorer who was the first westerner known to have travelled to West Africa between 1794 and 1803.
“My brother went missing in Mali in March/April 2003. He was due to return to the UK in July 2003 but he never returned. I never gave up hope of finding Chris, or at least knowing he is alive and well. This March, after over a decade of hoping, we received news that Chris sent a Facebook friend request to Raabia Hawa, a Kenyan conservationist,” said Hannah.
According to a page, Searching for Chris Velten, set up to find him, the family had received news of his sighting in Kenya since March 16, 2016 and were hoping their online campaigns would lead Chris to contact them.
“The last we spoke to Chris (or rather Mum and Dad did),he was just outside Kita, Mali, when he found a working telephone in a little shack. He took the opportunity to wish Mum and Dad happy birthday and told Mum about his 6-week trip so far. He was positively bouncing with energy and stories and had loved travelling through The Gambia and Senegal. He had just sold his donkey and was then walking, pushing a hand cart full of provisions,” posted Hannah.
She further added that her brother hd told them he was four days behind in his schedule and had met a man who invited him to stay at his house. Chris went with the man and was never heard from again.
In earlier posts, Velten’s family explained that they were working with a media liaison in Nairobi who was spearheading the search campaign free of charge as well as reached out to various non-government organizations to assist them in their search.
“Our aim is not to force Chris to get in touch, simply to let him know that we love him and would dearly like to know he is well and happy,” read another Facebook post.
His sibling went on to speculate that her brother was living under the radar with locals in Nairobi.
“He will likely have suffered from malaria and more than likely will have had, or has, amnesia. He is also likely to be working with young children. He is probably being looked after and we think he will be physically and emotionally fragile,” speculated Hannah.
Chris’ disappearance has been covered in a number of international media outlets including BBC, the Times, Daily Mirror as well as on social media platforms around the world.
Hannah, 41, told an interviewer at the Mirror that she had thought him dead and could not begin to imagine how she’d had her children without her brother arround.
-tuko.co.ke
