The latest of the five individuals who disappeared near Tegucigalpa, Honduras, on June 23 was found dead on Monday, joining the other four who were located the previous Friday. The National Police confirmed these discoveries as part of the ongoing investigation into the troubling incidents.
The final identified victim is Elvis Izaguirre. He is now added to the two pairs already known: Alberto Coleman with Annie Rachel Villatoro, and Alejandro Enrique Aceituno with Kennet Gabriel Cruz. Their remains were recovered on Friday in a mountainous area between Tatumbla and El Zamorano, situated roughly twenty to thirty kilometers east of the capital city.
Due to advanced decomposition, the remains of the fifth victim were transported by helicopter from the Honduran Air Force to Tegucigalpa and later sent to Forensic Medicine at the Fiscalía (Attorney General’s Office). A Fiscalía spokesperson told reporters that the families will be informed of the formal handover on Tuesday.
The four victims discovered on Friday were handed over to their families on Sunday and were immediately buried at a single cemetery in Tegucigalpa.
The five people who were murdered and subsequently disappeared had been in the Mirador de Oriente neighborhood of Tegucigalpa. There, the partner couple Coleman and Villatoro had planned to rent a house, which five individuals opposed. Authorities detained these five on June 24, alleging they belonged to the M-18 gang because they tried to prevent the couple from occupying the property, according to the Security Minister, Gustavo Sánchez. The remaining two men were friends of Coleman and Villatoro and were helping them move to another location in a vehicle later found by authorities.
Police reported that the five detainees held the keys to the car and a phone belonging to the couple on June 24. They are expected to face charges of kidnapping and murder as the case proceeds in Honduran courts.