Catherine Johannet Columbia Graduate Dead in Panama

Catherine Johannet

Catherine Johannet is an American woman who’s body was found while vacationing in Panama. The 23-year-old was last seen in early February and three days later her body was recovered.



A massive search began after Catherine Johannet went missing on February 2nd around 10:00am. Local authorities found her lifeless body on Sunday, February 5th.

Reports say Johannet had been staying in a hostel on Isla Colón, where her  belongings were left behind.

She was on her way to to Bastimento Island, in Red Frog Beach and was supposed to comeback in the afternoon but never did.

Accoridng to her LinkedIn, Catherine Johannet was an English teacher who used to work at Ivyprep in Hanoi, Vietnam. She attended Edgemont High School and later Columbia University in the city of New York from 2011 until 2015. She graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Comparative Literature.

Miss Johannet was extremely well travelled, she had interned in a number of programs in the United States and Portugal. From 2012-2013 she was a peer advisor at Columbia University. She then moved on as an Editorial intern for the Oxford University Press.

She was also an intern at Bellevue Literary Review, Sterling Lord Literistic, NYU Master Scholars Program in Humanistic Medicine, AEIPS in Lisbon, Potugal and StoryCorps. According to her profile on Equest.edu she worked and studied at the Lisboa University for two years.

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Catherine Johannet, originally from Greenville, NY., is survived by her two siblings, Laura and Paul Johannet.

Both of her siblings paid heartfelt tributes to Catherine. Laura Johannet who works at Zocdoc and is a Hamilton, NY resident posted on Facebook

hey friends. thank you for your support as we tried to find my baby sister. all your shares and contact with others helped us feel like we were doing something while we were stuck getting there. we will always appreciate that. unfortunately we have learned today that she has passed away. my family is thinking of all our beautiful memories with our laughing, adventurous, warm little girl. she was always there to listen to you and just enjoy life with her loved ones.

Paul Johannet wrote

Hi everyone. Thank you for your amazing efforts to search for my youngest sister Catherine, who went missing while traveling in Panama last Thursday. It brought comfort to our worried hearts knowing that you were already looking for her while we were still flying to Panama. Unfortunately the worst has been confirmed. She passed away. We said goodbye to her today. We love and miss her dearly. She was a world traveler – by the age of 23, she had already visited 6 continents and innumerable countries, including a recent 18-month trip to Vietnam where she taught English Literature to local students. She was cheerful, adventurous, thoughtful and warm – all qualities I strive towards. I’ll always look up to my youngest sister.

Accoridng to updates, Catherine’s body was found on a wooded trail not far from a beach on Bastimentos Island. No cause of death has been provided, police are investigating but have not determined yet if there was foul play.