US offers $5 million reward for American citizen kidnapped in Afghanistan 12 years ago

The United States has set a $5 million reward for information leading to the location, recovery, and return of Paul Edwin Overby Jr., a U.S. citizen kidnapped in Afghanistan's Khost province 12 years ago.

According to a statement from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Overby, an author and researcher, was last seen in mid-Thor 1393 (around May 2014) in Khost city while traveling toward Pakistan's Waziristan region to conduct research for a book. The FBI emphasized that the identities of individuals providing information will not be disclosed.

The FBI had previously offered a $1 million reward in 2018 and issued multiple calls for information following his disappearance. The $5 million reward was determined in May 2025 and has now been publicized.

A report by the Shianan network in the Afghan month of Miizan last year suggested Overby may have died in Afghanistan. After approximately 12 years, the cause of his disappearance or potential kidnapping remains unknown, and no group has claimed responsibility.

In a related context, the U.S. government has previously designated the Taliban administration as a "country supporting unfair detention," stating that the Taliban detains U.S. citizens. Washington has repeatedly accused the Taliban of using prisoners as leverage.