Though more than ten years have passed, the disappearance of two Dutch students still fuels numerous theories.
Kris Kremers and Lisanne Froon, aged 21 and 22, vanished in April 2014 after meticulously planning a memorable hiking adventure in Panama.
On April 1, around 11:00 am, they embarked on their hike through a wooded area near the Baru volcano in Boquete, Panama, but tragically never returned.
A massive search effort was launched by authorities to locate the missing friends. However, it yielded no answers and only led to further questions.
Ten weeks after their disappearance, a significant discovery was made when a backpack containing their phones, camera, money, and clothing items was found by the Culebra river.
The phones had remained operational for some time after their disappearance. Police discovered the two friends had made a total of 77 calls to emergency services, but received no response before the phones died on April 11.
A series of photos dated April 8—several days post-disappearance—were also on the camera. These included many dark images taken at night and one believed to show the back of Kremers’ head.
The case took another tragic twist two months later when a pelvic bone and a foot still inside a walking boot were found. DNA testing confirmed that the remains belonged to Kremers and Froon.
Interestingly, while Froon’s bones appeared to have decomposed naturally, Kremers’ bones were stark white, suggesting they had been bleached.
Despite these findings, there was insufficient evidence for authorities to determine their exact cause of death.
The mysterious circumstances surrounding the women’s fate continue to provoke debate on social media, with many speculating on what happened.
However, it is crucial to note that these alternative theories lack concrete evidence and have not been validated by authorities.
On a post discussing the disappearance, a user commented: “Central/South America is extremely dangerous for tourists, especially for white non-Spanish speakers. It’s incredibly stupid to leave tourist zones down there. They could’ve died in an accident, or they may have been butchered alive. It’s honestly 50/50.”
“It could have been something as simple as seeing a perfect photo spot a little ways off the trail and not thinking it would be a big deal to head over there,” another user suggested.
A third individual wrote: “I do think it was misadventure- it’s so sad and I really feel bad for their families. I remember when this first happened there was discussion about the signage being insufficient to warn anyone that you are going off trail if you hiked past the peak. Obviously, after having two tourists die, you better bet that there are gonna be all new warning signs all over the place.”