Body found in hunt for New York Stockbroker who vanished in Mexico after he left it all behind to motorbike across South America

  • Harry Devert, 32, went missing in a troubled area of Mexico on January 25
  • He left a job in finance in New York to motorbike through central and South America
  • Authorities found the Kawasaki and a body wrapped in plastic next to it
  • The body has not been identified
  • His mother said its state of decomposition is about five months

A sudden break has come in the case of a day trader who left a comfortable life in New York for a transcontinental motorcycle journey, only to go missing January 25 in a deeply troubled region of Mexico.

Authorities have found the green Kawasaki motorcycle owned by Harry Devert, the 32-year-old adventurer from Pelham, N.Y.

Beside the abandoned motorcycle were the remains of a body wrapped in a black plastic bag.

Ann Devert, the mother of the missing man, said by telephone that authorities took photographs of the motorcycle, including its vehicle identification number, or VIN.

'I had them send me an image of the VIN number and it’s the same VIN number as Harry’s Kawasaki,' Devert said.

Adventures: Harry Devert on the motorbike he bought to drive across Mexico. He vanished in the dangerous Michoacan state

Adventures: Harry Devert on the motorbike he bought to drive across Mexico. He vanished in the dangerous Michoacan state. A body found next to his abandoned Kawasake has not yet been identified

A sudden break has come in the case of missing New Yorker Harry Devert, an adventurer who vanished in Mexico

A sudden break has come in the case of missing New Yorker Harry Devert, an adventurer who vanished in Mexico

Local police say they found a body wrapped in plastic next to Mr Devert's abandoned motorcycle

Local police say they found a body wrapped in plastic next to Mr Devert's abandoned motorcycle

'The remains have been transported to a morgue in Zihuatanejo.

'I’ve heard word that the state of decomposition is about five months.'

Devert, who held both French and U.S. citizenships, was an adventurer who had already spent five years traveling through Europe and South Asia, keeping friends and followers apprised of his wanderings on anewyorkertravels.com.

One blog post begins like this: 'I’m the owner of a big smile and a broad taste for adventure.'

The last his girlfriend heard from Devert was on Jan. 25.

He’d visited a monarch butterfly reserve in Michoacan state, home to a powerful organized crime group, and was headed to a beach on the Pacific coast where the final scene in the 1994 film The Shawshank Redemption was filmed.

The beach is in adjacent Guerrero state.

A statement from the Guerrero office of public security Friday morning said authorities found the abandoned motorcycle along a dirt road leading to La Majahua beach in the township of Union Isidoro Montes de Oca.

The Pelham man quit his job in order to follow this route through America, which was posted on his travel blog

The Pelham man quit his job in order to follow this route through America, which was posted on his travel blog

Risks: Mr Devert is a seasoned adventure who previously traveled around the world for years

Risks: Mr Devert is a seasoned adventurer who had previously traveled around the world for years

The statement said authorities also found '10 packages of what appeared to be narcotics (marijuana and cocaine)' near the motorbike and body.

A spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City said issued a brief statement: 'We are aware of the news reports that indicate a motorcycle and human remains were discovered in the state of Guerrero near the town of Lagunillas and are working closely with the authorities to get more information.'

Devert’s mother said she’d gone to a police station in Pelham this afternoon to provide a DNA sample.

Meanwhile, 'the American Embassy has sent someone to get bone scrapings from the corpse to send to a laboratory in the States'.

The samples will be compared to see if there is a genetic match.

The mother praised the help she’s gotten from U.S. diplomats in Mexico.

Wild times; Mr Devert said he had previously been threatened with a gun in Venezuela

Wild times; Mr Devert said he had previously been threatened with a gun in Venezuela

'They’ve been great. Especially now that they’ve gotten something solid to go on,' she told me.

Harry Devert was heading for Brazil on his lengthy motorcycle journey, hoping to catch part of the World Cup soccer tournament, which ends this Sunday in Rio de Janeiro.

He was a 'mega' fan, his mother noted.

'He would come out of the jungle to see a game by Barcelona or Real Madrid,' she said.

Devert said she believes the remains may be of her son but is holding out hope that a crime gang could have launched a 'subterfuge' to delay a pending raid on a ranch known to hold kidnapping victims.

'I’m saying 55 (percent) that it is Harry, but I’m holding on to that 45 (percent),' she said.

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