The Spanish tourist who died this Saturday in Tortuguero had planned a 10-day vacation to Costa Rica. Relatives of the said she was in the country since August 1st.
The 30-year-old tourist was identified by the Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ) as Arcanza Gutiérrez López. But Spanish media report her as Arantxa López Gutiérrez. The young woman was originally from Alicante, but she lived in Madrid with her husband, a tour guide with whom she traveled to Tortuguero.
On Saturday morning, she went for a walk to a path near the hotel where she was staying, before the trip she had scheduled to Tortuguero National Park, according to the Spanish media.
As she did not return, hotel staff looked for her in nearby areas, but found her lifeless. She appeared to have marks on her body, so it is presumed that she was strangled. However, the OIJ awaits the results of the autopsy to confirm if that was the cause of her death.
Public Force police together with the Coast Guard conducted an operation that allowed the apprehension of the alleged murderer. The man is identified with the last name Diaz, he is 33 years old and has a Nicaraguan nationality.
Nelson Barquero, ai director of the Public Force of the Caribbean region, explained that this subject would have entered the country illegally three months ago and had been working at a hotel in the area for four days.