Update, 11:19 a.m. Monday: Police announced at 11:15 a.m. on Monday that three assailants were involved in the crime, not four. They also revised the spelling of the victim’s last name.
Four Three armed assailants allegedly killed U.S. retiree Kurt Hergis Heigis, 64, Sunday night in San Ramón, a coffee town 36 kilometers northwest of San José.
Police have not released a suspected motive in the crime, which occurred at about 7:30 p.m. near a bridge over the Chachaguita River. The gravel road is frequented by drug addicts, Judicial Investigation Police (OIJ) said in a preliminary statement.
Heigis was accompanied by a woman identified only as Martha, who told police the couple was traveling to their home in La Fortuna, a town near the Arenal Volcano in northern Costa Rica.
The woman said attackers blocked the road with a vehicle and then pulled Heigis from his car. They allegedly dragged the victim to a nearby location where they beat and stabbed him to death.
The assailants then attacked the woman before fleeing.
The OIJ report noted that Heigis had been living in the country for at least eight months.
If you have any more information on Heigis or the attack, email reporter Laianer Arias at larias@ticotimes.net. This is a breaking story, follow The Tico Times for updates.
