Girlfriend of American ex-cop missing in Greece ‘totally disgusted’ with locals for doing almost nothing to find him
The girlfriend of a missing retired LA cop is slamming Greek authorities for seemingly doing as little as possible to find him — forcing loved ones to rush to the Mediterranean nation to mount their own rescue mission.
“I’m totally disgusted with the way we’ve been treated,” Debbie Leshane told The Post on Monday.
Ex Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy Albert Calibet, 59, disappeared last Tuesday while hiking on the island of Amorgos — one of seven tourists to go missing or die in Greece this month.
Debbie Leshane, the girlfriend of missing tourist Albert Calibet, criticized local Greek authorities for not doing enough to help find him. Tanna Shoffeitt Savage/Facebook
“Albert has been a first responder since he was 25 years old. Everybody deserves to be searched for. But he really, honestly deserves it,” Leshane said in a call from the island.
She traveled 32 hours to Greece along with his brother Oliver and two members of the LA County Search and Rescue team.
Along with three local friends and family members, they’ve formed their own search team, and they’re spending every waking minute combing the scorching hot cliffs for him.
Temperatures on the island have topped 100 degrees in the past week.
“We actually literally had splinters going through our shoes into our feet. It’s ridiculous, it’s the seventh day and we’re beyond panic,” she said.
Calibet went missing wihle hiking on the island of Amorgos. Janet Freeman via FOX News
Leshane said she was shocked at the bare-minimum efforts local authorities have made to find Calibet. She said they flew a helicopter in the area for just two hours the day after he went missing.
Promises to bring in drones, sniffer dogs and more chopper searches have gone unfulfilled.
Leshane and Calibet’s brother Oliver offered to pay for Greek authorities to fly helicopters and use search dogs, but those requests have also been rebuffed.
Leshane said search dogs “could have saved his life,” already.
Leshane traveled to Greece with Calibet’s brother and two LA County Search and Rescue team members to join the search. Shannon Kelley Jones/Facebook
The area on the Greek island where Calibet is being searched for. Debbie Leshane
Leshane and Calibet’s friends have been starting their searches every day at 5 a.m., and they end late at night with strategizing their next search and rescue hike.
But, she said Greek authorities don’t seem to work past sundown.
Their attitude seems to be, “let’s just go to bed and let Albert sleep outside,” she said.
Calibet, a seasoned hiker with a dual citizenship in Greece, left for a hike around 7 a.m. on Tuesday and did not arrive at his destination as expected about four hours later, according to the Greek Reporter.
Leshane said she is “disgusted” with the way the search group has been treated by officials. Debbie Leshane
His last known correspondence was a text of a trail sign he sent to his sister.
Calibet also made a call to Leshane as he was about to embark on his hike. She knew something was wrong when he didn’t respond to her texts after she woke up the following morning.
Leshane said she has also tried to ask authorities for his cell phone records to see if Calibet made any other communication attempts, but have been told it is illegal figure search his phone location records.
Leshane has also slammed the US Embassy in Athens for failing to help them mount a more aggressive search effort.
“The United States also dropped the ball,” she said.
Still, seven days out, the searchers remain vigilant for Calibet and has continued to exhaust every effort to locate their loved one.
“I’m gonna stay here until they find the love of my life,” said Leshane.