Beauty Queen Vanishes Before Miss World Pageant

Honduran police detain 4 people for questioning
By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 17, 2014 7:00 PM CST
Beauty Queen Vanishes Before Miss World Pageant
In this April 26, 2014, photo, Maria Jose Alvarado is crowned Miss Honduras in San Pedro Sula, Honduras.   (AP Photo)

Honduran police have apprehended four people in the case of a beauty queen who went missing mere weeks before she was supposed to compete for the Miss World title, the Telegraph reports. Maria Jose Alvarado, the reigning Miss Honduras, hasn't been seen since attending a party in Honduras on Thursday. She went with her sister, Sofia, to celebrate the birthday of her sister's boyfriend at a spa near the town of Santa Barbara, the AP reports. The two women reportedly got in a vehicle afterward and disappeared. Among those under arrest are the sister's boyfriend, Plutarco Ruiz, and the owner of the venue where the party was held. "They are being investigated," says a police chief.

The vanishing is a hot topic in Honduras, which the Telegraph calls "notoriously violent" and "home to the most dangerous city on the planet." That city is San Pedro Sula, which logs more than 1,200 murders annually among a population of 1 million. It's also about 30 miles away from Santa Barbara. "Open your hearts and understand my pain," says Alvarado's mother. "There is an all-powerful God that sees everything and I hope you set them free." Alvarado, who was supposed to fly to London Sunday and try on her Miss World dress, says on her pageant profile that she likes playing sports and hopes to be a Honduran diplomat one day, Yahoo reports. (This beauty queen was accused of stealing a $100,000 crown.)

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