A 23-year-old Canadian woman was found dead at a resort in Mexico, where she went to celebrate her birthday with her boyfriend – an ice hockey player who has reportedly been detained in connection with the death.
Kiara Agnew was found dead Friday at the Grand Sunset Princess Resort in Playa del Carmen, on Mexico’s Caribbean “gold coast” south of Cancun, a day after she arrived with Ryan Friesen, 26, the Toronto Star reported.
The Secretariat of Public Security in Solidaridad said it has detained a man after “a lifeless woman was found with possible marks of violence in a hotel located in the Xcalacoco neighborhood.”
Canada’s Global Affairs acknowledged that Friesen was held by Mexican authorities.
“Officials are providing consular assistance to the families and are in contact with local authorities,” Global Affairs rep Charlotte MacLeod told the Star, adding “no further information could be disclosed due to privacy considerations.”
The state prosecutor’s office in Quintana Roo said a foreign national was arrested in the death of a Canadian woman without elaborating.
Agnew’s devastated aunt Katlyn Levesque told CBC News: “I didn’t want it to be true — I still don’t want it to be true.
“Kiara loved to travel, she has wanted to travel since she’s been little. She was really excited about [the trip] … she had a heart of gold. She was vibrant, courageous, driven,” she said.
The aunt, who lives in New Brunswick, added that the family was still awaiting autopsy results for her niece, who would have turned 24 on March 11.
“She has been counting down to this trip. It is shocking. We want to know what happened,” Levesque told the Star. “She was a beautiful, wonderful person inside and out. It’s unfair that she was robbed of her chance to experience life to the fullest.”
The outlet has been unable to reach Friesen’s family, who have been in touch with Agnew’s family and expressed their devastation, Levesque said.
“I know that they’re hurting too and confused. They want to find out what happened as much as everybody else,” she told the Star.
Friesen plays for the Dawson Creek Canucks, a Junior “B” ice hockey team in British Columbia, and Agnew worked at the Dawson Creek branch of Lake View Credit Union, Levesque said.
“All at Lake View Credit Union are mourning the loss of our teammate and friend, Kiara Agnew,” the company said on its Facebook page. “We send our love and faith to all others who have been impacted.”
Levesque said Agnew, who had been with Friesen for a year and a half, had been counting down to the Mexican trip trip since Christmas.
“Kiara loved traveling. She always wanted to see the Mayan ruins. That was part of their all-inclusive trip. She was really excited about it,” she said.
Levesque said she warned her niece about dangers abroad.
“The last thing I said to her was to be safe. You know, ‘Don’t wander around alone, be mindful of your surroundings.’ Then, I never heard from her,” she told the Star.