Connecticut mom Patricia Murad-Caruso vanishes on pilgrimage trip in Japan

A Connecticut mother of three on a hiking pilgrimage vanished in a mountainous region of Japan last week — and her frantic family is pleading for help after she never arrived at her hostel.

Storrs resident Patricia Murad-Caruso was last seen April 10 when she left a guesthouse to embark on an 11-mile trek – but never reached her checkpoint, the Hartford Courant reported.

“She left at 7 a.m. and she was supposed … to meet up at the next hostel where she was going to stay that night. But she never showed up,” sister-in-law Julie Murad-Caruso told Connecticut Insider.

Patricia is an experienced hiker and wouldn’t have had any problems unless she encountered an unexpected event like an avalanche or mudslide, Julie said.

Local authorities conducted a search but ended it after 72 hours when they couldn’t find her, she said.

The missing woman’s husband, Kirk Murad, flew to Japan on Sunday night with at least one of the couple’s three adult children.

“Friends and family have shown tremendous love and support, which is of needed comfort during this nightmare,” Murad told the Courant in a text.

“Pattie has been my best friend since 1986. We married in 1990. I want to celebrate our 33rd anniversary next month with her and both our families,” wrote Murad, a career educator and girl’s high school basketball coach who is now a consultant for local school administrators.

“We were trying to coordinate things between our friends in Japan, my daughter, Murphy, in Singapore, and the rest of my family in the US. One thing we knew we had to do was hire a private search and rescue company, as the police in Japan had stopped searching after three days,” Murad wrote.

“Unfortunately, the police didn’t notify the consulate in Japan that Pattie was missing until early Friday morning. I tried to find her location after calling and texting her, but her battery had already died by that point,” he added.

On Monday, US Sen. Richard Blumenthal said he has contacted the State Department and the White House for help in finding Patricia.

“Having spoken to members of Pattie’s family, some now already in Japan, I am determined to seek every possible source of search and rescue to aid her,” Blumenthal told the Courant. “I am deeply concerned and am praying for Pattie’s safe return to her family.”

Her daughter, Murphy, wrote on a GoFundMe page that her mom planned to be in Osaka on April 13 and 14 – and was supposed to meet up with a couple in Ryozen-ji Temples two days later.

“Our family friends went to the location hoping she would show up but after waiting for a few hours, walking around both temples and showing Pattie’s picture around, they came out empty handed,” she wrote.

“My family and I have gathered that she was following the Kohechi route of the Kumano Kodo trail, traveling north to south,” Murphy added.

Patricia, a graduate of the UConn School of Business and a recent retiree of United Technologies, was on her third major pilgrimage, according to her sister-in-law.

“She’s touched so many lives. She has a strong work ethic, she’s focused, extremely intelligent and she loves to bake for her family,” Julie said of her sister-in-law, who moved with her family to the US from Taiwan when she was young.

A Department of State spokesperson said they are aware of an American citizen missing in Japan.

“The Department of State has no higher priority than the welfare and safety of U.S. citizens abroad,” the rep told Connecticut Insider.

“We stand ready to provide appropriate assistance to U.S. citizens in need and to their families. When a U.S. citizen is missing, we work closely with local authorities as they carry out their search efforts, and we share information with families however we can. Due to privacy considerations, we have no further comment,” they added.