Found Deceased Mexico - Dean Lucas & Adam Coleman, both 33, Navolato, Sinaloa, 21 Nov 2015

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Unfortunately, people who have not been confronted with crimes on a daily basis, tend to be much more naive and take more risks.
 
musicaljoke said:
Large number of cans were found inside the van, so many that the locals thought they were traders. I wonder if we will hear more about the cans. It's an odd detail, isn't it?
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Not really. Maybe they were trying to save money by eating canned food. Or they heard Mexican food might give one food poisoning and were trying to avoid that. My family has a lot of cans in the car when it went on a trip.
 
This is absolutely terrible, I have no words. I have been reading travel warnings for anyone traveling to Mexico. It is strongly urged to not travel at night and to avoid isolated roads. I did read that they arrived at 10pm but one can only speculate when they encountered trouble.
 
I am unable to translate the complete article, but it mentions a local saying that were trying to buy a map in Los Mochis, Sinaloa. Also Andrea Gomez, Adam Coleman's girlfriend, said that they were in a hurry to get to Guadalajara and that is the reason why they traveled at night.

http://www.am.com.mx/celaya/mexico/dos-turistas-australianos-desaparecen-en-mexico-246446.html

Apart from the article, I read on travel.state.gov that the only place in Sinaloa which is ok for non-essential travel is Mazatlan. Even there it is recommended that any travel in Mazatlan be limited to Zona Dorada and the historic town center, as well as direct routes to/from these locations and the airport.
 
vcorningstone said:
This is absolutely terrible, I have no words. I have been reading travel warnings for anyone traveling to Mexico. It is strongly urged to not travel at night and to avoid isolated roads. I did read that they arrived at 10pm but one can only speculate when they encountered trouble.
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The people who have done this terrible act are the lowest of the low of humanity
 
Lulu14 said:
Not really. Maybe they were trying to save money by eating canned food. Or they heard Mexican food might give one food poisoning and were trying to avoid that. My family has a lot of cans in the car when it went on a trip.
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Yeah this makes sense, seeing as they drove all the way down from Edmonton, Canada.
 
vcorningstone said:
I am unable to translate the complete article, but it mentions a local saying that were trying to buy a map in Los Mochis, Sinaloa. Also Andrea Gomez, Adam Coleman's girlfriend, said that they were in a hurry to get to Guadalajara and that is the reason why they traveled at night.

http://www.am.com.mx/celaya/mexico/dos-turistas-australianos-desaparecen-en-mexico-246446.html
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My translation here, for those of you who don't read Spanish:

The loved ones of two Australian tourists on a trip from Canada to Mexico are looking for the two men, who traveled in a van through the northern state of Sinaloa and went missing on the 20th of November, it was reported on Sunday.

Andrea Gomez, girlfriend of Adam Coleman, said in a Sunday interview with The Associated Press that she and Josie Cox, girlfriend of Dean Lucas, were traveling to Culiacan, the capital of Sinaloa on Monday morning, because a burned-out van with two men inside that was found in that state could be that of the Australians. Lucas and Coleman were both 33 years old.

"Everything points to it perhaps being them, because of the matching van, they brought a bicycle.. but we still don't have anything confirmed, which is why Josie arrived in Mexico from Canada today, and Monday (tomorrow) we're going in the morning to Culiacan to see the bodies and perform DNA tests," says Gomez. Cox is bringing Dean's dental records, "and I have some pieces of dreadlocks that Adam gave to me which I was told may be of value", she added.

Additionally, she said that they have been receiving messages from those who assert that they have seen them, "but right now we don't know what's true and what isn't."

For their part, the Sinaloan authorities have not released any information in that respect.

The two men, travelers and lovers of surfing, left the city of Edmonton in the center of Canada with another friend, picked up the van in Vancouver, and drove down the Pacific coast to Mexico, leaving their friend in Las Vegas (Nevada). They took up odd jobs to make money and continue the trip, explained Gomez.

They had plans to meet with her (Gomez) on the 21st of November in Guadalajara, Jalisco, in western Mexico, but they never arrived. According to the young Mexican woman, when they put out alerts on social media after declaring the men missing, someone contacted her to say that they had seen the men on the night of November 20 in an OXXO (a 24-hour convenience store) close to Los Mochis, Sinaloa, trying to buy a map.

"They were in a hurry to arrive (in Guadalajara), and I believe that's why they traveled at night," recalled Gomez. "I had told them of the danger but never told them of the terrible things that could happen. And because of that, I feel a little responsible," she lamented.

The person who saw them last is the same who later informed Gomez of the discovery of a burned-out van similar to that of the men in Navolato, Sinaloa, on the route which they should take to get to Guadalajara.

The Australian Ministry of Exterior Relations sent a message assuring that the consular authorities of their country were collaborating with those of Mexico and with the families to confirm the fate of the men.

Gomez, nevertheless, complained about the lack of attention received and seemed worried for (her?) safety. "But we're afraid, we're very scared and we have received help from neither the Australian embassy nor the Mexican authorities who didn't even inform me of the discovery of the van," she complained.

Coleman had planned to stay and live in Mexico, while Lucas planned to go with Cox to the United Kingdom.
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So sad. Sinaloa is not a good place to be, for anyone. Remember El Chapo was/is the head of the Sinaloa Cartel, very dangerous people.

Wasn't there another case of a young American on his motorbike traveling through Mexico to a surf spot who met a similar fate? I'm sorry, I can't remember his name, but he was missing for a while before his remains were found.

Surfers are usually the nicest, most ecologically aware, and generous people. I hope it was quick.
 
Very sad :(

This is what the Australian government's official advice is on driving in Mexico:

Using toll (cuota) roads may reduce the risk of crime when driving, but you should remain vigilant, particularly when travelling on toll roads in Sonora, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas and border regions as tourists have been attacked on highways in these areas. Avoid driving at night outside of major cities, including on major highways. Incidents of violent carjackings have increased significantly, particularly in northern border areas, but also along the Pacific coast. On occasions these attacks have been carried out by heavily armed gangs posing as police officers.
Visitors travelling in large camper vans or sports utility vehicles (SUVs), on roads in and out of the United States, have been targeted by organised crime groups.

http://smartraveller.gov.au/countries/mexico#
 
I also questioned about the gas tank but found this photo posted. The gas tank was definitely on the left side. This is heart reading.
 
Missing in Mexico: Drug war means no-one is safe
6985166-3x2-460x307.jpg

http://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2015-11-30/mexico-drug-gang-war-means-no-one-is-safe/6987170
 
Another article

Translated to English (thanks Google Translate)

"The Attorney General of the State of Sinaloa, confirmed that the van of the two Australian tourists missing is the same that was found burned in the town of Navalato and two charred bodies inside.

On November 21, residents of the receivership of Juan Aldama, reported this unit on the side of the irrigation channel number 42 and at the time authorities arrived, they discovered that there were two charred bodies so that the preliminary investigation was integrated 262 / 2015.

The Attorney General of the State, Marco Antonio Higuera Gomez said that when conducting forensic evidence, also found that the type Chevrolet Chevy Van, truck registration in Canada and was quickly contacted the embassy of this country.

I confirm that the vehicle identification number if applicable to a vehicle of your country Canada and precisely stable that brought me license plates of Alberta, Canada, and were in the name of Adam Russell Coleman, so try and communicate it to the Embassy of Australia, "he said.

At the moment they can not confirm that the two bodies found inside this truck correspond to the two Australian surfers, but since DNA testing for the Attorney General's Office were ordered to be analyzed.

The prosecutor announced that an agreement was State Security Council, assign a panel investigating officers to track down those responsible for these acts.

One day before the discovery of the van, Dean Lucas and Adam Coleman, both 33 years old, were reported missing from the second girlfriend, who would be in the city of Guadalajara, Jalisco."

https://cadenanoticias.mx/nota.php?cont=notas&nota=25644
 
Why, though ?
I might have expected them to have been kidnapped for a ransom... but why murder them outright ?
Did they see something they shouldn't have ?
The thought of dying like that chills my blood.
MOO

Rest in peace, Lucas and Adam !
My condolences to your grieving loved ones !
 
CAPIWannaBe said:
Another article

Translated to English (thanks Google Translate)

https://cadenanoticias.mx/nota.php?cont=notas&nota=25644
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Just want to let y'all know that if you need an article translated I'm happy to do it! PM me or just post the link here and I'll do a translation as soon as I see it.

ETA: By the way, while I would normally expect someone to have taken the plates of the vehicle, the fact that it had very conspicuous plates (Canadian, I believe? Definitely not from a US border state, or Mexico) would have been cause to hesitate. I suspect that whoever did this removed the plates as per custom, and then realized they would raise way too many flags if placed on another vehicle, so they disposed of the plates elsewhere or (if we're lucky) sold them as scrap to someone who could identify the seller.

ETAA: Actually, in this region, I highly doubt anyone who had bought the plates as scrap would dare identify the seller. People generally don't like being beheaded.
 
LietKynes said:
Why, though ?
I might have expected them to have been kidnapped for a ransom... but why murder them outright ?
Did they see something they shouldn't have ?
The thought of dying like that chills my blood.
MOO

Rest in peace, Lucas and Adam !
My condolences to your grieving loved ones !
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my guess is it's the gang culture out there, it's the way things are done why target these men? maybe they think all tourists are rich and are targeted for money etc
 
Magneto said:
my guess is it's the gang culture out there, it's the way things are done why target these men? maybe they think all tourists are rich and are targeted for money etc
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I'm not sure either, why bother killing these guys? Why the extreme hostility? Did they possibly camp somewhere on private property (like someone mentioned on here) and pay the ultimate price?
 
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