Several dozen people disappeared in the Andes, hoping to meet the Virgin Mary
More than 20 people have gone missing in western Venezuela in the Andes, including five children. They went to the mountains to meet “God, or the Virgin Mary” two weeks ago and still haven’t returned. Now the police and rescuers are looking for them.
It turned out that 57-year-old Rosa Garcia took people to the Juan Pablo Peñalos National Park. Who told her religious group that she received a revelation from the Virgin Mary that the end of the world was coming.
More than forty people went with her to the mountains from the city of La Grita, but some of them returned after Rosa informed them that when they met the Virgin Mary, they would not be able to look into their eyes, pray and they would need to throw out their Cell phones.
On August 22, people went to meet God, or the Virgin Mary, and have not returned to this day.
About 160 law enforcement officers and search and rescue teams are looking for them.
On Monday, authorities discovered an abandoned farm where members of the missing group had left clothing and food. And since they, too, most likely got rid of phones, it is difficult to find them.
Locals have already said that Rosa Garcia, the owner of a food stall in La Grita, founded her own religious group “Following Christ”, where she set very strict rules. People had to get up for prayer at three in the morning, they were forbidden to watch TV, and women were not allowed to comb their hair and uncover their faces. Rosa also often said that “a lot of bad things are coming, that Christ has already shed bloody tears and the end of the world is coming.”
Even Rosa’s family members thought she was out of her mind. And the local priest has already said in a sermon that people like Rosa Garcia do more harm than good.