Ohio Architect And Fiancée Missing In Mexico

Relatives worry that Ohio architect, Jose Gutierrez, along with his fiancée, and her two family members may have been abducted when they went missing in Mexico on Dec. 25, Christmas Day, Fox 19 reported.

Jose Gutierrez's family told the media that they have not heard from their son since he and Daniela Márquez's family left to eat at a restaurant on Sunday, Dec. 25, while he was visiting her in Zacatecas.

According to Márquez's mother Rosa Pichardo, Gutierrez, Márquez, her sister Viviana, and their cousin Irma Vargas did not arrive at Márquez's Colotlán home as scheduled at 10 p.m. Pichardo learned that her daughter was in Vivoras, some 20 miles north of Colotlán, about two hours later through a notification received.

The SUV the group had been using was found abandoned in the Vivoras neighborhood, the media reported.

“There were those who saw they were kidnapping them, there was a lot of panic, screams, but they didn’t get them out and they took the vehicle,” Pichardo said. “They took the girls, my daughter’s fiancé, Daniela. They took off, they went to Vivoras.”

On Dec. 22, Gutierrez traveled from Cincinnati to see Márquez, a trip his relatives claim he takes frequently.

According to Brandie Gutierrez, his sister, "he goes around three times per year."

Brandie said she last spoke to her brother on Christmas before they went out to eat. Later that night, she said she read reports of trouble in the area.

“The bars actually noticed screams,” she said. “There is something that is not right.”

A travel warning was released by the US Department of State for certain regions of Mexico. One of the Mexican states that the US advises "do not travel to" is Zacatecas because of crime and kidnapping there.

“Violent crime, extortion, and gang activity are widespread in Zacatecas state. U.S. citizens and LPRs have been victims of kidnapping,” the advisory states.

The missing family is reportedly being looked for by the Mexican government. A representative for the State Department told Fox News that the agency is collaborating with local law enforcement to support search efforts.