A British woman has gone missing in southern Brazil after she entered rough terrain while on a meditation retreat on Sunday and did not return.
Brazilian federal police are investigating the disappearance of Katherine Brewster, 27, from Seaford, East Sussex, who reportedly left a house on the outskirts of an eco-village in Rio Grande do Sul state four days ago in light clothing and without her mobile phone.
The couple who were hosting Brewster reported her missing to police on Tuesday. She was last seen near a hydroelectric power plant on the banks of the Uruguay river, according to local reports.
Brazilian investigators said the 27-year-old’s passport and credit cards are missing, but her clothes and belongings were found at the property where she had been staying.
A team of fire officers have been searching the region where the woman went missing with tracker dogs since Wednesday, and said they believe she could have got lost in difficult terrain near the river.
Police are also working with the hypothesis she may have left voluntarily without telling others as she is believed to speak fluent Portuguese.
Authorities are monitoring the use of the missing woman’s credit card, and agents at Salgado Filho airport are checking passengers in case she turns up at the international terminal.
Alpestre chief of police Lourenço Guerra, in Rio Grande do Sul state, said: “We are extremely worried about Katherine’s whereabouts as she hasn’t taken any clothes or other personal items with her apart from her passport and the credit card and she left barefoot and in light clothes. She didn’t even take her cell phone.
“We have stepped up the case by calling in the federal police who are taking over the investigation. Agents have been in touch with her mum already and she has warned the credit card company in the UK, which is monitoring whether any transactions have occurred since her daughter went missing.
“The federal officers are also keeping the mum up to date on the search for her child.”
According to the manager of the nearby eco-village, Clairton Silva, the 27-year-old had been introduced to the couple she was staying with through a friend in the UK. Silva said locals heard of the tourist’s disappearance through the couple hosting her.
He said: “We were informed by the couple of Katherine’s disappearance. The couple are very worried as Katherine left without warning and didn’t even say said goodbye, but went to meditate in a forest on their land as she had done a few times before.”
A Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokesperson said its staff were assisting the family of the missing woman and remained in contact with local police.