SoCal Woman Disappears In Guatemala During Yoga Retreat

MONTEREY PARK, CA — The family of a Southern California woman is desperately searching for the 29-year-old after she went missing more than two weeks ago in Guatemala.

Nancy Ng disappeared Oct. 19 in Lake Atitlán, her family said on a GoFundMe page created to raise money for the search effort, which had received nearly $40,000 in donations as of mid-day Monday.

“She loves yoga, traveling, hiking with her family, and cuddling with her cat,” the GoFundMe said. “She has a kind heart, a big smile, and can talk to anyone about anything (and often, everything). She’s a caring daughter, a loving sister, and a supportive friend.”

In the days immediately following her disappearance, helicopter, boat and dive teams searched the lake, but divers were only able to reach about 130 feet down, while the area where Ng went missing is up to nearly 1,000 feet deep, according to her family. Naval boat searches stopped after she had been reported missing for three days but Ng’s family hired boat companies to keep looking.

Hindering the effort is minimal information about how she disappeared and witnesses who have not come forward, her family said, adding local authorities are probing the matter, along with the FBI and U.S. Department of State.

Ng is from Monterey Park, attended Cal State LA and works at the Alhambra Unified School District, KTLA reported, adding she was on a yoga retreat when she went missing.

In a recent Instagram post, her sister, Nicky Ng, remembered their last night together at a family birthday party.

“We blew out our candles, ate the cake, and talked for a bit in the parking lot before you said that you’d better get back home bc you had to pack for your trip,” the post said. “If I would’ve known you’d go missing a week from that day, I would’ve asked you to stay a little longer. We miss you so much, Nancy. Hoping to find you and bring you home soon.”