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1 year ago
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The last person to see missing California woman Nancy Ng alive on a Guatemala yoga trip has finally come forward and claimed she 'warned' the woman not to swim in the lake she disappeared in.
Nancy Ng, 29, vanished on October 19 during a kayak excursion on Lake Atitlán in Guatemala with a yoga group that included Blazek.
Christina Blazek was also out on the lake at the time and has faced criticism over her silence since Ng disappeared.
San Bernardino County public defender G. Christopher Gardner has now spoken out to defend his client and emphasized that accusations she had refused to talk about what happened despite the missing woman's family's pleas are untrue.
'To say my client hasn't done all she can is not true,' said attorney G. Christopher Gardner to ABC 7.
Nancy Ng, 29, vanished on October 19 during a kayak excursion on Lake Atitlán in Guatemala with a yoga group that included Blazek
A woman who was with Ng on the water previously told investigators the yoga enthusiast got out of her kayak and drowned. Her vessel was located but there has been no trace of Ng since
San Bernardino County public defender G. Christopher Gardner, has defended his client - who was on the trip - over accusations of her silence since Ng disappeared
Gardner clarified that Blazek did not go with Ng intentionally but encountered her on the lake. During their interaction, Ng expressed a desire to swim, despite Blazek warning about the rough conditions.
'My client did not go anywhere with Ng. They happened upon each other on the lake,' he added.
Blazek's account reveals that Ng, while in the water, pushed away her kayak, leading to unsuccessful attempts to retrieve it. When Blazek sought help, Ng reportedly had vanished.
'She tried to tell her not to swim because it was rough out there and there was a good current,' Gardner said to ABC 7.
Blazek claims the warning went ignored. Her lawyer confirmed that Ng went into the water and in the process pushed her kayak away, which Blazek then tried to retrieve.
'She kept one leg in her kayak and one leg in the other kayak and tried to get back to her... and got close to her. And then apparently, she lost the kayak again and she turned around to go back to get the kayak again, and when she turned back around, Ms. Ng was gone.'
Blazek then called for help, Gardner said.
Gardner dismissed rumors of Blazek fleeing Guatemala, stating she provided a full statement to local authorities, emphasizing her unfamiliarity with the lake.
But Ng's family expressed frustration at the lack of communication from Blazek, and clarified that they only seek answers and Nancy's safe return.
The Ng family say they are struggling to accept the narrative of events offered up by Guatemalan authorities that Ng drowned during a kayak trip
Ng works at a local school district helping students with disabilities and is active in both yoga and travel in her personal life
Ng's family said it is the first time they have head Blazek's account of what occurred that day after several attempts to reach her.
'If it is like she says and it is an accident, I don't understand how she could choose to leave my family in the dark for almost four weeks, and not just say that from the start,' said Nicky Ng, Nancy's younger sister to ABC 7.
'We're not blaming anybody or accusing anybody of anything. All we want is answers and we want to bring Nancy home,' said Ng.
Gardner said his client was 'traumatized' by the experience and needed time to come forward.
'They tell her they understand she has been through a traumatic experience but then they tell her she needs to come forward to assist authorities.... and they say in the same email if she doesn't come forward they'll make her come forward,' said Gardner.
'I hope she can understand that we have no account of what happened because she is the only person that saw what happened, and it wasn't included in the report,' Ng added.
The investigation is ongoing and the FBI continues to interviews witnesses in the case.
Earlier this month, the owners of a kayak company used by the Ng before she vanished said the group she was with 'immediately clammed up' after she disappeared.
The FBI has now joined the search, with Guatemalan authorities eager to speak to the woman last seen with Ng or anyone on the yoga retreat as all have since left the country
Lee and Elaine Beal, the proprietors of Kayak Guatemala, spoke out amid the search for Ng, 29, who is feared to have drowned during an excursion on Lake Atitlán - although her family has since said they are struggling the accept this narrative.
The Beals said that ten people went out on the trip on October 19, but only eight returned with Ng and another woman seen paddling further into the body of water.
Eventually the woman returned to shore alone, but there was no sign of yoga enthusiast Ng who has not been seen since.
'No one in the group was interested in talking to anybody,' Lee told Good Morning America. 'It was almost like, immediately clamming up and like we are not going to say anything.'
The group failed to pay the owners then all left the country 'within 12 hours' of the suspected accident, which struck Elaine Beal as odd.
'They didn't say a word to us. I just don't understand that part, leaving within 12 hours,' she added.
The couple described how they were watching the group, with Ng and the female kayaker about 100 yards away. The women continued paddling until they were out of sight.
The next thing the couple saw was a distress signal, before the woman returned alone.
'I witnessed the survivor being ushered up the steps,' Elaine added, 'She was clearly distressed.'
Guatemalan authorities had struggled to locate the woman who was last with Nancy, or the tour guide as they left the country.
The woman previously told investigators that Ng drowned after she got out of her kayak to go swimming.
Lee and Elaine Beal, owners of Kayak Guatemala, rented a kayak to missing woman Nancy Ng before she vanished during a yoga retreat in Guatemala where she is suspected to have drowned. They say that the rest of the group 'did not say a word' after the alleged accident
But Ng's family have come out to say they are struggling to accept the official narrative, and pointed out several perplexing details in the case.
In an update posted to a GoFundMe created by Ng's sister's partner on behalf of the family, they said: 'We are aware of the statement from the Guatemalan prosecutor’s office.
'However, it’s difficult for us to accept that explanation for a few reasons. None of the participants we have spoken with saw Nancy get out of her kayak and into the water.
We have tried to contact the woman who was with Nancy during the incident many times over the last three weeks but she will not speak with us.
'The police report we received did not include a direct statement from the woman. We’re yet to have seen any official statement from her or any other retreat participant.
'This woman’s silence has not only hindered our search efforts, it’s made an unbearable three weeks all the more agonizing.'
Prosecutors have now asked for international assistance to locate the woman and the tour organizer.
In the meantime, Ng's family remain desperate for answers and have hired private searchers to comb the area.
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