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Family Anxiously Awaits Answers About Westchester Man's Disappearance

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. -- New Rochelle's Ann Devert spent Tuesday afternoon waiting for a call from government officials updating her with news on her son Harry, the Pelham resident who has been missing in Mexico for three weeks.

Harry Devert playing with local children on a previous trip to Laos.

Harry Devert playing with local children on a previous trip to Laos.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Harry Devert, Instagram

Devert said she is hoping to learn any news from authorities about her son and his whereabouts.

On Monday, Devert took part in a conference call with the American Embassy in Mexico and the FBI. During that conversation, the Devert family was told the United States and Mexican governments are working find the 32-year-old former Pelham resident who disappeared in the state of Michoacan approximately three weeks ago.

The Southwestern region is notorious for kidnapping and drug cartel wars. However, according to Ann Devert, the FBI said in all the cases involving a kidnapped American, a ransom demand has always been received well before three weeks.

The FBI warned the family to be wary of emails from scammers claiming to know the whereabouts of the 1999 Pelham High School graduate. They have received suspicious emails, she said, but plan on keeping an open mind.

"We have to follow every lead as best we can," she said.

Additionally, four search groups were deployed in Mexico on Monday, and the Mexican Federal Army has been asked to trace the last military escort Harry may have received.

Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, along with New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez, have also assisted in the search, reaching out to contacts in their networks who could assist.

Ann Devert, who has attended several meetings over the last week, said she feels numb, but the international response to her son's disappearance is what keeps her going.

"If I think about how I feel, I risk going to a dark place," she said. "But everyone who is helping us is a tiny point of light. It's extraordinary the amount of people who are trying to help us. My son's magnetic, dynamic, forceful personality is getting people to rally to find him."

Ann said her son's international travels have left him with friends around the world who have greatly aided the search effort.

"I happen to be related to this wonderful person with friends all around the world. I wish everyone's family who had a disappeared child could have a network like this," she said.

Harry's Instagram page is his preferred way to share his travels with his friends, which is why when it ceased to be updated after Jan. 22, his family became concerned.

"He wanted his friends who had stable lives and marriages and children to join him on his journey through his Instagram to celebrate the corners of the world where things are beautiful," she said.

@suzannesamin

ssamin@dailyvoice.com

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