Missing Man In Andes Survivor, Raul Fernando Gomez Circunegui, Facing Child Sex Abuse Charges

Yesterday we shared the news of Raul Fernando Gomez Cincunegui, the 58-year-old Uruguayan man, who was rescued from a shelter in the Andes by Argentine officials that were on the mountain, 9,318 feet (2,840 meters) above sea level, to record snow levels. Local media reported that Raul Fernando Gomez Cincunegui got lost in the remote Andes Mountains while trying to cross the mountain by foot after his bike broke down. "The truth is that this is a miracle. We still can't believe it," San Juan governor Jose Luis Gioja told the local Diario de Cuyo newspaper. "We let him talk to his wife, his mother and his daughter... I asked him: 'Are you a believer?' He told me, 'no, but now I am'." Missing Man Andes: Raul Fernando Gomez Cincunegui, 58, Survives 4 Months In Andes On Rats And Raisins

Now, there is a twist in the story, as it has been revealed that Raul Fernando Gomez Cincunegui is facing child sex abuse charges in Chile. According to Argentine officials, prosecutors have asked that he be extradited to Chile, as he is on trial for allegedly abusing an eight-year-old boy. The government of Chile had ordered that Raul Fernando Gomez Cincunegui not leave the country, and he was supposedly fleeing to Argentina when he got lost in the mountains. According to Chilean officials, an arrest warrant was issued in July for Raul Fernando Gomez Cincunegui, but he failed to appear in court. His mother; however, told the Associated Press that she does not believe the allegations against her son, as "Raul is a good, hard-working man."

Doctors who examined Raul Fernando Gomez Cincunegui revealed to reporters that he lost 44 pounds (22 kgs) during the four months and he was dehydrated. The Uruguayan man told doctors that he lived off of leftover supplies at the shelter and feasted on sugar, raisins and rats. "He's a patient with high blood pressure, a history of smoking and signs of undernourishment," said the doctor to Uruguayan newspaper El Pais, adding that "he's going to be fine and in a few days we're going to discharge him."

If you're grossed out by the thought of eating rats, then know that people have eaten far worse in order to survive. In the 1970s, a plane carrying the Uruguayan rugby team to Chile crashed in the Andes, carrying 45 passengers. Two months later, 16 survivors were rescued--others died in the crash, immediately after the crash due to the cold or injuries sustained from the crash, or from an avalanche--and revealed that they kept themselves alive by consuming the bodies of those who died.