Harry Bambridge, the brother of 21-year-old backpacker Amelia Bambridge, said he “absolutely” believes there is a chance his sister is still alive.
The brother of a British woman who disappeared after attending a late-night beach party on a Cambodian island said yesterday that her family is planning to hire a private team of professional searchers to comb the jungle for her.
Harry Bambridge, the brother of 21-year-old backpacker Amelia Bambridge, said he “absolutely” believes there is a chance his sister is still alive. She was last seen October 23 on the island of Koh Rong off the coast of southwestern Cambodia.
The brother is one of at least three family members who have come to the island to join the land and sea search.
The police chief for the Cambodian province said that he fears she has drowned, but that searches for her will continue. The provincial governor has vowed to search until the case is resolved.
Harry Bambridge told reporters that his family wants to conduct more searches inland, which has thick jungle. “We had use of a dog today which proved beneficial and gave us some more hope,” he said. “And also, we are looking to hire a private jungle search team.”
Koh Rong, about 25 kilometres offshore, covers an area of about 78 square kilometres.
Bambridge said his family finds the lack of information about where Amelia went “suspect.”
“You know, it’s a party. It’s not that busy. There’s plenty of staff there. One minute she’s there and next she’s gone. And no one seems to know right now,” Bambridge said. He said he believes there is a chance she was abducted, a possibility his father raised earlier.
“I totally believe that someone knows what’s happened to her. And, you know, it’s just a matter of finding some information that’s going to tell us more about what’s happened.”
Preah Sihanouk provincial police chief Major General Chuon Narin said he couldn’t rule out the possibility of murder, but that he doubted it because the island had not experienced any murder or robbery cases.
