U.S. man who disappeared on his way to B.C. music festival may have been seen 'running through yards'
Harsha Paladugu is shown in an undated photo provided by the RCMP.
An American man who travelled to Canada to go to a music festival disappeared at some point during his visit, and his whereabouts remain unknown two weeks later.
Mounties said the 30-year-old came to Vancouver from California on Wednesday, July 20.
Harsha Paladugu stayed with a friend when he got in, then left Thursday morning to go to a music festival outside of Salmo, B.C.
He'd planned to make the approximately eight-hour drive to the Shambhala Music Festival through a ride share. Police did not say how he'd found that ride, or whether investigators have spoken to those people.
They also did not say whether he actually made it to the festival, which ran from July 21 to 25.
Investigators were notified of his absence when he failed to show up in Toronto, where he'd planned to go after Shambhala. The friend he was going to visit said he still hasn't shown up.
Police said it's possible Paladugu is still in B.C.
He may have been seen a week after he flew into Vancouver, sitting next to a suitcase on the side of the road near the intersection of highways 3 and 6 about 3.5 kilometres south of the festival grounds. That would have been two days after the festival ended.
Mounties said the suitcase was turned over to police, and was determined to belong to Paladugu. It's unclear where Paladugu went without his suitcase, if it was indeed him seen with it that day.
Also on July 27, there was a report of a South Asian man running through yards in Salmo. The runner was seen at about 6:30 p.m., and matches Paladugu's description, but officers haven't been able to confirm it was him.
In the last week, there have been no further sightings, and he's still considered a missing person.
Police ask anyone who knows what happened or where Paladugu is to contact them at 250-357-2212.
Paladugu is described as South Asian, 5'10" and about 200 pounds. He has black hair.
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