UPDATE Monday 9.30am:
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Missing man, Rye Hunt’s family has appealed to Foreign Minister Julie Bishop to support his wish to be cremated and for his ashes to be returned to Tasmania at the earliest point, in a statement released on Monday.
Applications were made by Mr Hunt’s family to the Forum of Rio de Janeiro for the Tasmanians body to be cremated and repatriated to Australia.
Mr Wholohan completed necessary paperwork for the District Attorney, who has supported the family’s application for a cremation.
Mr Hunt’s partner, Bonnie Cuthbert and uncle, Michael Wholohan had the 25-year-old's body transported to a local funeral home after it was officially handed over.
Pending the approval by a Brazilian court, they hope to bring Mr Hunt’s body home on Wednesday, June 15
A statement released by Mr Hunt’s family said he had previously made clear he wished to be cremated and for his ashed to be scattered in Tasmania.
UPDATE Thursday 8.40am:
Rye Hunt’s family said they are “disgusted” Brazilian journalists directly text family members images of a body found by authorities to confirm whether it was Mr Hunt’s.
Australian authorities notified the family a body had been found in Marica, 25km from Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday morning Rio time.
It appeared to have come from the water.
Brazilian authorities are investigating the discovery and will carry out DNA testing to verify the identity of the body.
Mr Hunt’s family has asked for privacy and respect at this difficult time.
The 25-year-old was reported missing on May 21, after he separated from his travelling partner at the Galeao International airport in Rio de Janeiro.
It is alleged the men had taken what is suspected to be a highly potent hallucinogen known as NBOMe on May 20, causing Mr Hunt to experience a psychotic episode.
Last week, the Brazilian Navy called off a sea search for the missing Tasmanian man after 72 hours as they did not locate any personal belongings or sight a body.
MORE TO COME
UPDATE Monday 9.30am:
A sea search for Rye Hunt has been ceased after 72 hours as per Brazilian Navy protocol.
Mr Hunt’s family said no body or personal effects were found during the sea search, in a statement on Monday.
Bonnie Cuthbert, Mr Hunt’s partner, urged anyone with information to email FindRye@gmail.com.
“We are particularly interested in any information related to Rye after 6.07pm on May 21 [Rio time],” Ms Cuthbert said.
Since arriving with Mr Hunt’s uncle in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday, June 3 the pair have worked closely with local authorities on leads.
On May 30, a fisherman contacted police after recognising Mr Hunt's photo in local media, to report seeing him eight days earlier.
The man told Rio's O Globo newspaper that he and his girlfriend were fishing from a boat near Ilha Cotonduba when they spotted the man on the island.
The search for the 25-year-old continues.
EARLIER:
Tasmanian man Rye Hunt’s family has revealed a body has been sighted eight kilometres off the shore of Copacabana Beach.
However a search initiated by local authorities has returned nothing, according to a statement released by the family this morning.
Mr Hunt’s partner and uncle fronted the media on Friday afternoon, Brazilian time.
During the press conference, a reporter questioned the pair on a body reported sighted by the Brazilian navy.
“We don’t know anything about that,” Mr Hunt’s uncle said.
Partner Bonnie Cuthbert told reporters they would be in Brazil for “as long as we need”.
“We’ll do anything,” she said.
Mr Hunt’s family said they remain “hopeful” he will be found but are “very apprehensive”.
Anyone with information is urged to email FindRye@gmail.com.
Brazilian Police have found significant evidence confirming missing Tasmanian man Rye Hunt was under the influence of an illicit substance, which significantly affected his mental state.
Mr Hunt’s partner and his uncle met with the lead investigator Elen Souto on Thursday, June 2, after arriving in Rio de Janeiro to assist with the search on Wednesday, June 3.
Ms Souto discussed the case in detail with the pair.
A fisherman reported sighting a man fitting the 25-year-old’s description on the island of Cotonduba on May 22, this information has become the focus point of the ongoing investigation.
The island is approximately 900m from the North-East shore of Copacabana Beach.
A search of the island was undertaken but did not result in the discovery of Mr Hunt, or any of his belongings.
Local authorities have expanded the search area.
Mr Hunt’s sister, Romany Brodribb said it is an incredibly stressful time for the family.
“We are comforted by the support and genuine interest the Brazilian people have taken in Rye’s case and are humbled by their offers of help while members of our family are in Rio,” Ms Brodribb said.
Mr Hunt’s family released a statement thanking Ms Souto and her team for their dedication, professionalism and commitment to finding Mr Hunt.
“We would also like to acknowledge Counsellor and Consul-General, Marion Walshe, for her compassion and support of Bonnie and Michael in Rio since their arrival,” the statement said.
“The family appreciates the support of DFAT staff, particularly those managing the case directly, who have maintained in regular contact with us.”
EARLIER:
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has confirmed that 25-year-old Tasmanian Rye Hunt is still missing, despite reports he had been found on an island off Rio de Janeiro.
Brazilian police caused a stir in the missing persons case on Thursday when they revealed at a press conference that Mr Hunt had inhaled MDMA in a hotel with his travelling partner before he went missing on May 21.
Police spokeswoman Elen Souta said the two then went to the Roots of Lapa party where he experienced a “psychotic episode”.
“Him and his friend, they started to think that people were chasing them and they were thrown out of the party” Ms Souta said.
She said a local fisherman reported seeing him on an island three kilometres off the shore of Copacabana after he abandoned his travelling partner at the airport and had been reported missing.
The fisherman told police that the person he believed to be Mr Hunt was parched, had claimed to have swum to the island and had been injured by sealife.
She said that police believed he was still alive but had not yet made contact with his family or returned to his full mental state.
“We are monitoring all police centres to check all unidentified cadavers with fingerprints and in the future with DNA check to ensure we correctly identify Rye,” Ms Souta said.
Mr Hunt’s family released a statement refuting the drug claims, saying that any drug use would be out of character for him and that he had no history of paranoia, anxiety or mental illness.
Rye Hunt was extremely paranoid hours before his disappearance, club owner says
Missing Tasmanian man Rye Hunt believed his travel companion Mitchell Sheppard was "trying to kill him" at Rio de Janeiro's airport in the hours before his disappearance, messages sent from Mr Sheppard to a local man show.
Mr Hunt, 25, disappeared in the Brazilian city on the evening of May 21, following what police described as a "psychotic episode" after allegedly taking the party drug MDMA.
About 3am that morning, Mr Hunt and Mr Sheppard, 22, visited the Raízes da Lapa bar in the centre of Rio.
Bar owner Bruno Mouta told Fairfax Media the pair seemed to be extremely "paranoid" and appeared to be under the influence of drugs, believing other club-goers were "trying to kill them".
"They were trying to party, they were trying to have some fun, they were trying to dance, but they got so terrified because of the effects of the drugs that they couldn't have any fun.
"They were really freaking out, but they didn't do anything wrong, they were not violent - they were just in a bad mood, a bad vibe."
Mr Mouta says he and three security guards walked the pair back to their nearby hostel at the bar's close at 6am, and alleges Mr Hunt told him he had used drugs.
"I asked them which kind of drugs they had when we were walking, and Rye told me that he had 'MD', that he was not a drug-user, but as he came to Brazil, he was partying, he decided to try, but he was not a usual drug-user in Australia."
By the time they reached the hostel, Mr Sheppard was recovering but Mr Hunt was still "really terrified".
"As I was leaving the hostel, he went to me and grabbed me, holding, and asking 'please don't leave, please don't leave, they are going to kill me, you are the only one who can save me'."
Mr Mouta had given Mr Sheppard his phone number, and sent him a WhatsApp message the following day to check how the pair were feeling. Mr Sheppard replied, thanking Mr Mouta for his help.
Later that day, Mr Hunt and Mr Sheppard went to Rio de Janeiro's international airport to book a flight to Bolivia. They had an argument and Mr Hunt took a taxi to the suburb of Copacabana.
There, he rented an apartment, and went out about 6pm. He had not been heard from since.
On May 24, three days after Mr Hunt disappeared, a frantic Mr Sheppard messaged Mr Mouta again.
"Have you seen my friend rye at all?? The bloke I was with the other night? He has been missing for three days now! (sic)," Mr Sheppard wrote.
"My friend was freaking out and then he turned on me and thought I was after him and trying to kill him.".
Mr Mouta said Mr Sheppard had given him permission to make the messages public.
He was continuing to check in on how Mr Sheppard was doing, he told Fairfax Media.
"He said 'not bad' but he's looking for his friend, and he said he wants to stay until they find him."
A fisherman reported seeing Mr Hunt on an island off Copacabana on May 30, but searchers had found no sign of him.
A Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesperson told Fairfax Media they were "hopeful that Mr Hunt will be found safe and well, but continue to hold concerns for his safety."
Mr Hunt's family have said he was not a drug user and routinely passed tests for illicit substances as part of his employment in the mining industry.
- Lauren McQuillan, The Age