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Seven years later, family of missing teacher Sylviane Lozada pleads for answers

5 years 6 months 2 weeks ago Thursday, September 13 2018 Sep 13, 2018 September 13, 2018 11:00 AM September 13, 2018 in News
Source: WBRZ

UPDATE: An arrest warrant has officially been filed for Oscar Lozada in East Baton Rouge.

Read the full update with new details on the investigation here: http://www.wbrz.com/news/seven-years-later-arrest-warrant-filed-in-ebr-for-husband-of-missing-teacher

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BELGIUM- Through a facetime phone call Tuesday, family members of missing Brusly High School teacher Sylviane Finck Lozada gathered as they tried to reignite any information that could lead to the discovery of their loved one.

"We still don't know what happened to her," Anton Finck said. "We'd like to say we love her."

Lozada went missing on July 5, 2011, from her Baton Rouge home. Her husband, Oscar fled with their young daughter to Venezuela and still has not answered detectives questions about her disappearance.

Lozada was beloved by many. Karen Wooley taught with Lozada at Brusly High School and even stood as a bridesmaid in her wedding.

"Such a sweet, gentle soul," Wooley recalled. "Very intelligent. Very emotional, loving and caring."

Wooley traveled with Sylviane to her native Belgium, hung out on weekends, and went on other trips with her too. The pair were inseparable. When Sylviane vanished without a trace, Wooley knew something was awry. Sylviane would never leave her daughter who was her pride and joy.

According to investigators, at the time of Sylviane's disappearance, Oscar cleared everything out of their Springlake Home in Baton Rouge. He purchased five-gallon buckets and concrete. Those have never been found. He also purchased two one way tickets to Venezuela and has never come back to the United States.

"Because of all the evidence, the fact that he was an abusive husband...the fact that he had an argument... the fact that she disappeared that evening.... the fact that he fled the country.... the fact that he bought cement and buckets..... the fact that he never returned.... the fact that he is still not answering questions to anybody," Wooley said. "Those are the reasons I know he is responsible."

Liza Whittington was also a dear friend of Sylviane.

"Her child was everything to her," Whittington said. "She lived for that child."

With all the time that has passed, Wooley who knew both Sylviane and Oscar is pleading for him to cooperate with investigators.

"We know what you did," Wooley said. "You know what you did. How can you live with yourself...and call yourself a father to your daughter. You need to come clean and settle a lot of hearts."

The East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Office has declined to call Oscar Lozada a suspect. Instead, they said he is a person of interest. Adding another layer of complexity to this case is Venezuela's extradition policy. The country does not extradite Venezuelan nationals.

Sylviane Lozada was 51 at the time of her disappearance.

If you would like to read a statement from the family in French, click here. They used a translation program to convert it to English, you can read that here.

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