The family of a California man have said that he was drugged, robbed, and killed after going on a Tinder date in Medellin, Colombia while travelling.
The relatives of Paul Nguyen, 27, are now working to bring back his body.
“He was just someone that I could always look up to,” Amy Nguyen told ABC7 of her older brother. “He was always the first person I would call if I needed something.”
She said he was working as a contractor and was an avid traveller.
“Every time he was back home he would always share the most fun stories of his trip. He would bring back souvenirs. He would just tell us all the fun things he found and how he’s so happy he was travelling,” the sister said.
Mr Nguyen was visiting Medellin with a friend last week when he met a woman on the dating app Tinder.
Ms Nguyen said her brother was last spotted exiting a bar with the woman on Thursday morning at around 2am. His body was discovered later that same morning.
“They took all of his stuff and his belongings. We know all his cards were swiped after 4am,” Ms Nguyen told ABC7. “We believe there were multiple people involved and she was just there to lure him and set him up.”
She said Colombian law enforcement thinks Mr Nguyen was drugged and robbed but no arrests have yet been made. “It just felt so surreal when we found out. It was just very overwhelming trying to figure everything out and it’s hard that we can’t see him back home. We’re working really hard to bring him back,” she told ABC7.
According to Fox 5 San Diego, Ms Nguyen wrote on Reddit that the family think “that he was going out with this girl and was lured into getting robbed after they got into the car together”.
“His card was used at a pharmacy, however according to the cashier the guy was not Asian,” she wrote.
On a GoFundMe fundraising page, Ms Nguyen wrote that the perpetrators “chose money and greed over a single thought of my brother’s life”.
“With the help of his kind friend and our community, we tried whatever we could to find him,” she added. “But it was not enough. I wish I could have done more. I wish I had protected him more.”
“I am working on bringing Paul back to the US for a funeral service. Paul deserves to be back home, surrounded by love, family, and friends. Any donation will help relieve my family of stress and costs to bring him back and properly have a service here,” she wrote.
Ms Nguyen went on to thank those who supported the family.
“With your help, we are able to provide him the beautiful service he deserves. Paul was taken too soon and we can not change that, but you all have built a powerful legacy for him,” she wrote on Wednesday. “So many people have shared their happy memories and touching moments with Paul. He would be so happy to see all the love and support you hold for him. I wish he was here to feel all the love everyone has shown for him. I hope you keep these joyful moments of him and stay strong.”
“We will be using the remaining funds towards a lawyer and PI to bring Paul justice,” she added. “Although it is a frustrating and hard process, I hope we will eventually find peace.”
