Jean-Louis Pérez, a member of the Pyrénées family, returns to Barcelona after four months in hospital in Dubai

The member of the Pyrénées family, who was reported missing in May, says he spent four months in a Dubai hospital due to an illness.

Speaking to this newspaper on Tuesday, Pérez explained that he had begun his trip in March, departing from Barcelona and travelling via Cairo before arriving in Kampala, Uganda, where he had an appointment and planned to stay for four days.

According to his account, his plans were disrupted on the second day of his stay, when he says attacks on Iran began and the flights he intended to take were suspended. He says he ended up spending 23 days in Uganda, rather than the four originally planned.

During that period, he maintains that his identity was known and that he remained in contact with other people: “While I was there, I was, of course, identified and talking to everyone.”

From Uganda to Johannesburg before continuing to Dubai

Pérez explains that, after Kampala, he travelled to Guinea, where he needed to complete paperwork.

Difficulties finding flights to the Middle East forced further changes to his itinerary. The businessman says he could not find available flights from either Kenya or Tanzania and was eventually routed through Johannesburg, South Africa, from where he continued to Dubai.

His account therefore places his stop in South Africa after his stay in Uganda, rather than at the beginning of his trip, as initial reports about his disappearance had suggested.

“When I arrive in Dubai, I’m feeling terrible. They put me in an ambulance and take me to hospital,” he explained. According to his account, his arrival from Uganda prompted the hospital to introduce safety measures amid concerns that he might have Ebola. That suspicion does not amount to a diagnosis of the disease.

The businessman says he developed pericarditis and attributes his four-month hospital stay to the progression of his medical condition.

Efforts to obtain his medical records

Pérez also says that the hospital requested his medical records to check for any relevant medical history, and that obtaining them took months.

He explains that he did not have access to his phone and could not remember his contacts’ details, until he was able to provide those of a friend whom he identifies as an ambassador to Andorra. He says this contact helped initiate arrangements with the Andorran authorities and the Spanish embassy in Dubai.

According to his account, the process required powers of attorney and the involvement of lawyers. Pérez estimates that the procedures took between two and a half and three months.

He says he was finally discharged from hospital last week and took a flight to Barcelona. He also reports that his luggage and a bag containing personal documents were lost at the airport, although he still had his passport.

Pérez himself informed this newspaper of his return and his contact with his daughters. This information alone does not establish whether the missing-person report has been withdrawn or the police case has been closed.