Search continues for Dutch teenager who went missing near Lake Garda

Photo: Pixabay
Photo: Pixabay

Around 200 people are continuing to search for a 17-year-old Dutch teenager who went missing on holiday at Lake Garda.

Koen van Keulen has not been seen since boarding a bus in the early hours of Friday near the campsite at the Italian resort where he was staying with family and friends.

He was coming back from a festival with his brother and a group of friends, but was not with them when they got out at Pacengo Eurocamping at about 2am. The bus driver is reported to have said he saw a youth in a blue T-shirt get out at the following stop, about 3km down the road.

Italian police said on Monday they had traced a girl who was thought to have been with Koen, but it was a case of mistaken identity. The teenager’s bank card has not been used since he disappeared and his mobile phone is not answering calls.

A team of a dozen search dogs and handlers have travelled from the Netherlands to join the manhunt. Drones and boats have been scouring the area, volunteers have been going door to door with leaflets and police divers have been searching the lake in the vicinity of Lazise.

Koen and his friends had planned to go on a road trip to Croatia this summer, taking in local beauty spots along the way. ‘The boys had been looking forward to this holiday all year,’ said one of their fathers. ‘It doesn’t make sense that he’s just gone missing of his own accord.’

Thank you for donating to DutchNews.nl.

We could not provide the Dutch News service, and keep it free of charge, without the generous support of our readers. Your donations allow us to report on issues you tell us matter, and provide you with a summary of the most important Dutch news each day.

Make a donation