7news.com.au
26th January 2023 – (Bogota)A popular 23-year-old DJ has been found murdered – her body stuffed in a suitcase and dumped in a rubbish skip.
Police in Colombia are searching for Valentina Trespalacios’ 35-year-old American boyfriend, who they believe had travelled from the U.S. to propose to her.
Trespalacios, who has almost 16,000 followers on Instagram, was strangled before her body was found in a suitcase in the capital Bogota on 22nd January.
An autopsy found a deep groove in her neck, and police believe she was throttled.
The prime suspect is her Texan boyfriend John Poulos – who has been missing since the grim find.
The American had allegedly travelled from his home to Bogota to propose to Trespalacios, whom he had been dating for a year.
Police are now trying to confirm if Poulos, who has deleted his social media accounts, has fled the country.
The grisly discovery was made when a man spotted the suitcase in a dumpster.
Upon opening it, he was horrified to find the young woman’s body inside, and called police.
Investigators at the scene found personal items belonging to the DJ, including a student card for Uninpahu, where Trespalacios was reportedly studying trade and global business technology.
“Work is being carried out with security cameras in the area to identify the alleged perpetrators,” police Lieutenant Colonel Camilo Torres told local media.
According to reports, Trespalacios had gone to a party with Poulos.
The DJ’s grieving uncle Carlos Trespalacios said his niece was a national and international DJ with a great future.
“She was hired by the best clubs in Bogota and the country and she also had the opportunity to go to other South American countries,” he said.