SANTA MARTA, MAGDALENA, COLOMBIA – APRIL 6, 2025 In the Colombian coastal city of Santa Marta, the murdered Italian molecular biologist Alessandro Coatti (42), who was traveling through South America, was found. His remains were discovered scattered in several locations, with part of the body located in a suitcase left near a river on the outskirts of the city.
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- Alessandro Coatti 1
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- Alessandro Coatti 2
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- Alessandro Coatti 3
According to the police, Coatti was last seen after he went out in the evening during his stay in the area. Identification of the victim was carried out, among other things, thanks to a hotel wristband he still had with him.
Investigators from the beginning worked with the theory of a violent murder. The first indications suggested that he may have been the victim of a robbery that subsequently turned into a brutal murder. In some investigative lines, there were also considerations that he may have been lured into the incident through a fake online profile and subsequently assaulted and drugged.
The body was dismembered and parts were found in multiple locations around the city, which investigators described as a sign of organized violence typical of criminal groups in the region.
Santa Marta is among the tourist-popular areas of the Colombian Caribbean, but it has also long faced high crime rates and the activities of organized groups, which complicates the investigation of similar cases.
READ MORE:
https://lavocedinewyork.com/en/news/2025/04/09/italian-biologist-found-dismembered-in-colombia-possibly-killed-by-armed-gangs/
https://www.ansa.it/english/newswire/english_service/2025/04/08/italian-researcher-killed-and-dismembered-in-colombia-4_9bb1f92f-fe4a-465e-b3fa-ed73ca4198ec.html
