Alison MacKenzie is a woman from Prescott, Arizona, who has gone missing in Belize.
BreakingNewsBelize.com says MacKenzie, 43, was last seen on a tour taken with Ragamuffin Tours Friday night. Early Saturday morning she disappeared from her tent. She was camping at Rendezvous Caye, a small island, with her boyfriend, Paige Rote, 58. He reported her missing to authorities in Belize on Saturday at 6 a.m.
The Prescott Daily Courier reports MacKenzie was on a catamaran tour off the coast of Belize when she disappeared on January 18. Her mother, Cherie MacKenzie, told the Daily Courier that she feared that her daughter had fallen into the ocean and disappeared. She also said that the United States Embassy was helping with the search for her daughter.
Here’s everything you need to know about Alison MacKenzie:
1. Paige Rote, Alison MacKenzie’s Boyfriend, Is Not a Suspect
Channel 5 Belize says that Alison MacKenzie’s boyfriend, Paige Rote, is not a suspect in MacKenzie’s disappearance. The couple was staying in a tent on Rendezvous Caye after a catamaran tour they took with Ragamuffin Tours. Rote, 58, reported to authorities in Belize that he woke up on Saturday at 6 a.m. to find his girlfriend missing.
Alison’s sister, Jodie Dixon, told Channel 5 Belize that they spoke to Paige Rote, MacKenzie’s boyfriend, and as of January 21, 2020, he was still in Belize. She and her mother do not believe that he is involved in MacKenzie’s disappearance. She described him as “distraught.”
MacKenzie’s family told Channel 5 Belize that she came to Belize for vacation after the deaths of her father and step-father last year. She planned the vacation to “take a break and try to find peace.”
2. MacKenzie Has 2 Children
The Daily Courier says that Alison MacKenzie is the mother of two adult children. Her daughter, Madelyn MacKenzie, posted to Facebook, “This doesn’t even feel real. Please send your love, prayers, whatever you believe in to my mom. She has to come home. Please.”
Cherie MacKenzie says that her family is distraught and that MacKenzie’s children are “past being consoled.” She posted on Facebook that Alison’s children “have lost their mother and their best friend. I want my daughter home with us.”
MacKenzie has lived in Prescott, Arizona, since 1988. Her daughter, Madelyn, lives in Prescott as well. Cherie MacKenzie was told by the authorities in Belize that, if her daughter was not found by the end of the day on Monday, January 20, 2020, the search would likely be called off. Police are investigating and authorities are asking the public for help searching for the Arizona mother of two children.
3. Police Reported MacKenzie Was Drinking the Night of Her Disappearance
Channel 5 Belize says that police told the media that MacKenzie was drinking on Friday night, the night before she went missing. Tour officials said that her behavior was “erratic.” Lieutenant Roque Canul, Operations Officer, Belize Coast Guard, told Channel 5 Belize that Friday night, she started behaving suspiciously.
Cherie MacKenzie says that she received different reports about what happened the morning her daughter disappeared and that authorities are not making progress on their search efforts. She says that she is trying to find the other passengers on the tour but does not know where they are located. She says that she fears that her daughter may no longer be alive.
Alison MacKenzie’s sister, Jodie Dixon, told 7 News Belize that it was not typical for MacKenzie to drink and that she has never seen her intoxicated. She says that a woman named Charlie, who was on the same tour as MacKenzie, told her over the phone that the captain of Raggamuffin Tours was the last person to see her sister before her disappearance, and that he walked her back to her tent about 2:30 a.m.
4. Mackenzie & Rote Planned to Buy Property in Belize
Channel 5 Belize says that MacKenzie and her boyfriend, Paige Rote, planned on buying property later this year in Southern Belize. She came to Belize with her boyfriend in December 2019 and planned to return to the US in May 2020. Her family does not believe that her boyfriend was involved in her disappearance.
Cherie MacKenzie said in a Facebook post that Rendezvous Island, where the couple stayed the night after their tour is approximately two acres with about 10 palm trees.
The tour the couple took of the inaccessible parts of Belize’s reef began at Caye Caulker and ended in Dangriga, staying in the inner reef, where the water is calmer.
5. Ragamuffin Tours Is Helping Authorities Search for MacKenzie
Breakingnewsbelize.com says that Ragamuffin Tours, the tour company that MacKenzie and her boyfriend used to tour the South American island, is cooperating fully with police in their investigation. The tour company provided details about all passengers and each crew member on the tour with MacKenzie on Friday night. Extensive interviews have been conducted by police.
Raggamuffin Tours’ website says that the tour accesses the remote or inaccessible parts of Belize’s reef where people like to snorkel and fish. The tour begins at Caye Caulker and ends in Dangriga. The tour stays in the inner reef, where the water is calmer.
The trip lasts three days and passengers camp on Rendezvous Caye and Ragga Cayes while visiting Goffs Caye or English Caye, Tobacco Caye and South Water Caye.
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