By Shermain Bique-Charles
During the holiday season, families usually gather to enjoy each other’s company, indulge in delicious food, and have fun.
However, this year’s holiday season will be sad and challenging for some families in Antigua and Barbuda.
The Peters family is one of several with missing loved ones. This year they will celebrate without their beloved son Kyle Peters. Kyle disappeared from his family home in Vernon Estate on November 28 and there has been no trace of him since.
His relatives are heartbroken and deeply concerned for his safety and well-being. They continue searching for clues or information that could lead to his safe return, but as time goes by, their hope diminishes.
Kyle’s father, Acting Superintendent of Police Verbin Peters, told Observer, “Every day that goes by is one less hope that disappears. I have heard and seen families with missing loved ones, and now it is knocking on my door. Every day, it becomes harder.”
Kyle’s mother, Almorine Peters, still hopes she will see her son again.
She holds on to that hope but also knows that finding closure is important, even if it means accepting that he may never return.
Father-of-one Kyle is described as clear in complexion, of slim build and around 6ft tall. He was last seen at home on November 28 around 7.30am.
He was wearing a pair of long blue jeans without a shirt. He also has a cornrow-plaited hairstyle. His family confirmed that he received a call that day and left home but they do not know who the caller was.
The Peters family may not be the only ones having a painful Christmas. Kevin Millet, 18, disappeared on March 17, leaving his family in distress.
The Green Bay teenager was reported missing after the car he was renting was discovered burnt near Potworks Dam.
Chennezza Toulon, Kevin’s mother, is still praying for her son’s safe return. As the holiday season approaches, it becomes harder for her to cope with the uncertainty.
Noah Hurst’s family are also facing the harsh reality of not spending Christmas with him. The Lightfoot resident, who was 24 years old when he went missing, was last seen on May 23.
Hurst, who worked at local hardware store Veg International, received a call that day and left the house but never returned. He is described as about 5ft11 and weighing between 135 and 145 pounds.
His mother, Maria Hurst, is clueless about his whereabouts, saying his behaviour was normal on the night he disappeared.
Meanwhile, the family and friends of Kevorn Bailey will be facing their second Christmas without him.
Bailey, also known as ‘Sardis’, has been missing since August 29 2022 and his loved ones have been searching for him ever since.
His father, Gregory Bailey, who is the Director of Agriculture in Antigua and Barbuda, said that the last time he was seen was near the service station by the Agriculture Ministry Headquarters on Independence Drive.
Hyacinth Gage, a 74-year-old woman, was last seen by one of her daughters on May 7 2019 when she was at Mount St John’s Medical Centre for some routine blood tests. She is currently reported as a missing person. Her family, too, will spend another holiday without her.
So will the family of Robert Nathaniel Boyle, also known as ‘Buckman’, a 49-year-old construction worker and a Guyanese national who went missing in August 2017. He was last seen in Swetes Village, and his disappearance remains a mystery.
Other missing persons include Keri-Ann Joshua, of Potters, who has been missing since January 12 2013. She was last seen at her home by her mother and her whereabouts are still unknown.
Another is Roman Mussabekov, a 33-year-old man born in Kazakhstan and living in Canada, who disappeared from English Harbour where he was visiting as a tourist on May 16 2017. He was staying at Ocean Point Hotel in Hodges Bay and took a taxi to English Harbour on the same day he went missing. The taxi driver reported dropping him off at the Yacht Club Marina around 1pm.
Vincia James’ family will also be spending another holiday season without her. April 7 2017 was the last time Vincia was seen, on surveillance camera leaving her Old Parham Road workplace, Dixie Operations Ltd, shortly after 1pm.
Her ex-boyfriend Mikhail Gomes was charged with her murder and later found not guilty. The 26-year-old’s body has never been found despite several island-wide searches.
Tray Griffith, of Gray’s Farm, was 19 when he went missing on November 13 2018. His mother became worried when he did not show up at his grandmother’s house for lunch, which was his routine.
The police are currently investigating his disappearance, along with the cases of several other missing persons in Antigua and Barbuda.
Anyone with information on any of the cases is urged to contact the nearest police station or the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) at 462-3913.
The Parham Police Station can also be reached at 463-2060, or the CrimeStoppers hotline number at 800-TIPS.