American Brian Tarrence still presumed missing in Turks and Caicos 9 days after body found
Brian Tarrence, an American who disappeared while vacationing in Turks and Caicos, is still presumed missing nine days after a body was found on the island.
Search crews set out for the missing New Yorker on July 5 after he left his Caribbean vacation rental on June 26 and did not return.
Days later, police said they found "the body of a deceased male in a decomposed state," which has not been identified.
Limited police resources
The U.S. State Department issued a warning that Turks and Caicos police may have limited investigatory resources, which may be delaying answers to Tarrence's case.
"Nothing. There's absolutely no update. Not even an update on how far they are in the process of identifying and updating the public and the media and the family," said Wilkie Arthur, a reporter with Eagle Legal News who is following the case on the island.
CBS News New York called and emailed Turks and Caicos police on Monday for an update on the case. They said no update was available.
"We don't have a proper forensic lab here. We don't have no pathologists here," Arthur said. "We have to import everything and everyone. Everyone has to be brought in."
Nearly three weeks without answers
Carl DeFazio, a retired New York City Police Department member who was brought on as a private investigator in the Tarrance case, said no evidence so far indicates a crime occurred.
"If he was robbed, by now I think I would have seen a credit card charge, or found his wallet, or found him, you know," he previously told CBS News New York.
Tarrance was vacationing with his wife Maria. The couple lived in Orange County, New York, for several years before moving to a building in Midtown Manhattan in 2024.
Wednesday will mark three weeks since his disappearance.