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Photo by Giovanni Lamonica, Aralsk, Kazakhstan.

I haven't been everywhere...
but it's on my list!


Photo by Giovanni Lamonica,
Aralsk, Kazakhstan.



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  #91  
Old 10 Oct 2019
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Best wishes and all my support. Keep the faith!
  #92  
Old 10 Oct 2019
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Tks mika. Yep,pastorage!!
  #93  
Old 13 Oct 2019
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Hello everybody,

First a big thank you for your support so far, I would have felt very alone without the help and encouragement from the biker community!

I've been back in Bolivia for a week now. We have a hotel register entry in Coroico - Nicolas made it through the Carretera de la Muerte unscathed. He stayed at Hotel Bellavista from June 18 thru 21. He was apparently planning to take ill-famed route 25 from Coroico to Cochabamba through Chulumani, and then ride on to Santa Cruz.

I'm now in Santa Cruz, where I've talked to a very credible witness, who had a chat with Nicolas around June 26.

We need help from riders who are currently in Bolivia, in the Santa Cruz area: We need a hotel/hostel registry entry for his nights before / after he left Santa Cruz end of June: Nicolas' full name is Nicolas Stephane Marc Holzem, he's a Luxembourg citizen, and 44 years old.
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HELP locate missing biker on his way to Bolivia-20190905_053521.jpg  


Last edited by akosiwa; 13 Oct 2019 at 15:34. Reason: formatting
  #94  
Old 13 Oct 2019
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Quote:
Originally Posted by akosiwa View Post
Hello everybody,

First a big thank you for your support so far, I would have felt very alone without the help and encouragement from the biker community!

I've been back in Bolivia for a week now. We have a hotel register entry in Coroico - Nicolas made it through the Carretera de la Muerte unscathed. He stayed at Hotel Bellavista from June 18 thru 21. He was apparently planning to take ill-famed route 25 from Coroico to Cochabamba through Chulumani, and then ride on to Santa Cruz.

I'm now in Santa Cruz, where I've talked to a very credible witness, who had a chat with Nicolas around June 26.

We need help from riders who are currently in Bolivia, in the Santa Cruz area: We need a hotel/hostel registry entry for his nights before / after he left Santa Cruz end of June: Nicolas' full name is Nicolas Stephane Marc Holzem, he's a Luxembourg citizen, and 44 years old.

Many thanks for the update. As you know from your Facebook group, this article was in a local newspaper
https://www.eldeber.com.bo/153042_bu...o-desaparecido

(You had it put there, of course!! )

Is this the "chat" you refer to? With the guy who worked on Nico's bike?

How close are you to accessing his bank / credit card transaction information?

Hang on in there. Stay strong!
  #95  
Old 13 Oct 2019
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Hi Chris, there's a mistake in this article (and I'm not the one who posted it on FB). Nicolas talked to the manager of Superstore Sure, who is a keen biker himself. The manager - his name is Franklin - noticed Nicolas' bike parked outside of the store and went out to have a closer look at the bike and a chat with Nicolas.

Re the credit card information, believe me, I've been pushing for this as hard as I can from day one. The problem is, from my experience so far, Luxembourg cops are all in all not less lazy and burocratic than their Bolivian counterparts. Nicolas has a bank account in Poland. My sister brought the bank name and the account number to the Luxembourg police on a silver platter. The only thing they needed to do was write an official request for the associated credit card number to Nicolas' bank. This is all the Bolivian police needs to search the national credit card transaction database. This was more than 6 weeks ago. Instead of contacting the Polish bank they started some heavy judiciary procedure to request full access to Nicolas transaction history from Nicolas' Polish bank. Or at least this is my understanding: The Luxembourg police won't even talk to me - in their very own words 'because I'm not physically present in Luxembourg' ...
  #96  
Old 13 Oct 2019
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Quote:
Originally Posted by akosiwa View Post
Hi Chris, there's a mistake in this article (and I'm not the one who posted it on FB). Nicolas talked to the manager of Superstore Sure, who is a keen biker himself. The manager - his name is Franklin - noticed Nicolas' bike parked outside of the store and went out to have a closer look at the bike and a chat with Nicolas.

Re the credit card information, believe me, I've been pushing for this as hard as I can from day one. The problem is, from my experience so far, Luxembourg cops are all in all not less lazy and burocratic than their Bolivian counterparts. Nicolas has a bank account in Poland. My sister brought the bank name and the account number to the Luxembourg police on a silver platter. The only thing they needed to do was write an official request for the associated credit card number to Nicolas' bank. This is all the Bolivian police needs to search the national credit card transaction database. This was more than 6 weeks ago. Instead of contacting the Polish bank they started some heavy judiciary procedure to request full access to Nicolas transaction history from Nicolas' Polish bank. Or at least this is my understanding: The Luxembourg police won't even talk to me - in their very own words 'because I'm not physically present in Luxembourg' ...
Many thanks for the quick reply and the clarification regarding my first point.

The Luxembourg police clearly are as useless as the (unjustified?) reputation for which Latin American/ African police are known. You have the letter from the lady in the Luxembourg Royal Family. Is that any use when dealing with the Lux police? There must be some sort of European / Worldwide missing persons central bureau? Like there's Interpol for looking for criminals.

In my limited experience of dealing with commercial organisations, including in my case, ASDA supermarket and British Airways, when I couldn't get what I wanted from their minions, I wrote to their organ grinder = chief executive. And got what I needed... Write/email to the Luxembourg Prime Minister/President? Or the Polish equivalent?
  #97  
Old 13 Oct 2019
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Done: https://www.facebook.com/11056946362...ndex=0&app=fbl

and done: https://www.facebook.com/11056946362...78871/?app=fbl

What I need is hotel register entries around Santa Cruz ... see my first post for today above
  #98  
Old 13 Oct 2019
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Thanks. Presume that they haven't replied?

Thinking out loud: Try doorstepping the PM? Or a local member of parliament? If you're not in Luxembourg, is there another family member/friend who lives locally? Get a lawyer involved: Threaten to sue the Lux police for not doing their job? Anything to promote their fat ar$es into burning calories.

Stay strong!
  #99  
Old 26 Oct 2019
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Nicolas Holzem 26/10/2019

Hello all,

time for an update here on the Hubb again.

Bolivia is at the moment locked down by a nation wide general strike, as the election fraud was too obvious.

Catherine, Nicolas sister, is searching for him near Rurrenabaque ... and the Bolivian biker community is trying to help as much as they can. Catherine found some new leads and talked to people that met Nicolas near Rurrenabaque.

On 16/07 Nicolas was seen in San Buenaventura (near Rurrenabaque) at the village fiesta, and Catherine met people that talked to him. He was trying to sell his bike.

This is exactly one month after he entered Bolivia and after he had the last contact with his family.

We are still waiting for the credit card details from the police in Luxembourg.

More later on.

Saludos desde Samaipata
mika
  #100  
Old 28 Oct 2019
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if these findings are true, this story and thread are becoming quite suspicious. traveler stops communicating with his "family." now trying to sell his bike during a trip? his own national police refusing to investigate their own missing citizen's financial history? maybe he wants to disappear.



i truly hope the guy is ok. i really do. but this story has become fishier by the day.



and yeah, someone is gonna come along and tell me to shut up, and that's fine.
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  #101  
Old 28 Oct 2019
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Quote:
Originally Posted by teevee View Post
if these findings are true, this story and thread are becoming quite suspicious. traveler stops communicating with his "family." now trying to sell his bike during a trip? his own national police refusing to investigate their own missing citizen's financial history? maybe he wants to disappear.



i truly hope the guy is ok. i really do. but this story has become fishier by the day.



and yeah, someone is gonna come along and tell me to shut up, and that's fine.
That would be really bad news for the family. If he really wants to desappear, it won't be easy to locate him...
  #102  
Old 28 Oct 2019
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Sorry if this has already tried, or been suggested and rejected, but could you get a TV channel or investigative journalist on the case? Those guys are normally pretty good at opening doors and can apply pressure to uncooperative authorities that individuals couldn't.
  #103  
Old 28 Oct 2019
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Sell Moto?

Quote:
Originally Posted by teevee View Post
if these findings are true, this story and thread are becoming quite suspicious. traveler stops communicating with his "family." now trying to sell his bike during a trip? his own national police refusing to investigate their own missing citizen's financial history? maybe he wants to disappear.



i truly hope the guy is ok. i really do. but this story has become fishier by the day.



and yeah, someone is gonna come along and tell me to shut up, and that's fine.
I agree, there's a reason, he wanted to sell moto?
We are all still hopeful
  #104  
Old 30 Oct 2019
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Hi guys,

I'm on my way back home. I've been able to trace Nicolas all the way through mid-September. I now believe he's alright and just needs some time off the grid. I've got no proofs - we still haven't been able to get hold of his credit card data - but I'm confident enough to be able to resume my life. I don't think he knows we're looking for him. If you come across him, please say hi and ask him to write to his daughter. I'm not sure I've managed to completely convince her that her dad is alright.

Last edited by akosiwa; 15 Dec 2019 at 03:13.
  #105  
Old 30 Oct 2019
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Quote:
Originally Posted by akosiwa View Post
Hi guys,

I'm on my way back home. I've been able to trace Nicolas all the way through mid-September. I now believe he's alright and just needs some time off the grid. I've got no proofs - we still haven't been able to get hold of his credit card data - but I'm confident enough to be able to resume my life. I don't think he knows we're looking for him. If you come across him, please say hi and ask him to write to his daughter. I'm not sure I've managed to completely convince her that her dad is alright.
That is very positive news.
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