A search is underway for a Maine man who vanished while “seeking enlightenment” in Hawaii more than a year ago, according to a report.
Alexander Gumm, 26, disappeared in February 2018 from a youth hostel on the island of Kauai and hasn’t been seen since, the Milford Mirror reported.
“I just want to know, is he alive,” said his mom, Sally McLaren, who added her son shaved off his hair and took a vow of silence before his trip.
The family — which thinks that he may have joined a monastery — launched a social media campaign last week and Gumm’s friends plan to travel to Hawaii to assist in the search.
Before traveling to the island paradise, Gumm became heavily influenced by Hinduism and Buddhism, his family said.
“Alex took a vow of silence in 2017,” his father, Ben Gumm, said. “He very seldom talked to anyone. He tried to be as silent as he could.”
Cellphone records show that he contacted two cab companies before he vanished — but those companies have no record of driving him anywhere, the Milford Mirror reported.
Since he went missing, Gumm hasn’t touched his bank account that has around $8,000 in savings, according to his family. They have contacted monasteries on the island and hired a private investigator but have been unable to track him down.
“I have no problem with him being in a monastery,” his father said. “He’s an adult, but if they’re holding him there against his will that would be a very big concern.”