Sonia Bottacchiari and her two children have been missing since April 20
Credit: Family Handout
NEED TO KNOW
- A mom and her two teen children remain missing weeks after going on a camping trip
- Sonia Bottacchiari and her son and daughter, ages 14 and 16, disappeared on April 20
- The search and investigation into the family members’ whereabouts remains ongoing
A mother and her two teenage children remain missing weeks after they embarked on a camping trip together.
Sonia Bottacchiari and her son and daughter, ages 14 and 16, disappeared on April 20, after leaving the province of Piacenza in Italy for a short vacation in Friuli Venezia Giulia. Bottacchiari, 49, brought the family’s four dogs along for the trip, Italian outlets La Repubblica, Il Fatto Quotidiano and Libertà reported.
Each of the family members' cell phones have been turned off since April 20, per the outlets. They were reportedly scheduled to return on April 24.
Authorities later found Bottacchiari’s Chevrolet in the Italian city of Tarcento on May 6. Bottacchiari’s ex-husband, Yuri Groppi, told La Repubblica that Sonia had texted him on April 20, saying she and the children were going to the Gemona campsite.
His son also texted him that day, saying, "Twenty minutes and we're here. Bye, Dad," and the man's daughter had also texted a classmate about a school test, per the outlet.
Yuri — who has been separated from Bottacchiari for 12 years — filed a missing persons report after the family failed to show up at their planned location.
Credit: Family Handout
“We called the campsite and they said they had never seen Sonia and the kids and had received no reservations," Yuri’s brother, Jodi Groppi, told Libertà in a statement translated from Italian.
The Piacenza Public Prosecutor's Office (PPPO) subsequently opened a child abduction investigation.
Bottacchiari reportedly resigned and claimed money from her company before leaving for the trip, according to La Repubblica and Il Fatto Quotidiano.
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A social worker visited Sonia's house the day after she went missing and found “15 days' worth of supplies for her father,” who lives with her. The findings led to a complaint being filed on April 27, per La Repubblica.
Credit: Google
Yuri claimed to La Repubblica that his ex-wife had allegedly met someone else “who had introduced her and her children to an adventurous lifestyle” before leaving for her trip.
The search and investigation into the family remains ongoing. PEOPLE has reached out to the PPPO for comment.
Read the full article here
