Mexican Resort Hotel Tragedy: Family Shares Woman's Final Text as New Details Unfold About American Couple's Death
Authorities believe the couple died of “intoxication by an undetermined substance.”
Most tourists flock to Mexico with the intention of having the time of their life – they don't expect that their dream vacation will also be the end of it. Over the years there have been a number of mysterious deaths liked to the South of the Border country, and many of them have never been resolved. On Tuesday, two Americans were found dead in their luxury hotel room in Mexico's Baja California Sur. While initially believed to be a result of carbon monoxide poisoning, new details have been revealed about how exactly the couple died.
According to prosecutors in Mexico, Abby Lutz and John Heathco died of "intoxication by an undetermined substance." Initially, they maintained the cause of death was gas inhalation, likely carbon monoxide. However, correspondence between one of the deceased and family members offers more clues about what happened.
The couple was found dead on Tuesday at Rancho Pescadero, a resort near Cabo San Lucas. Police were notified that paramedics found the couple unconscious in their room and were dead upon their arrival, and had likely deceased 11 or 12 hours earlier.
However, Lutz's family told CBS News that in the days before their deaths, the couple believed they had food poisoning, spending spent Sunday night in a Mexican hospital being treated for dehydration. They returned to their hotel Monday.
"She said, it's the sickest she's ever been," Lutz's stepsister, Gabby Slate, told the publication. "She texted her dad and said, 'good night, love you,' like she always does and that's the last we heard from her," Lutz's stepmother Racquel Chiappini-Lutz added. The last time they spoke with her was Sunday night.
Paramedics who arrived on the scene told ABC News they experienced "intoxication symptoms such as hypoxia and racing heartbeat," when they arrived in the hotel room. They decided to leave and went to a local hospital for treatment.
"We can confirm there was no evidence of violence related to this situation, and we are not aware of any threat to guests' safety or wellbeing," Henar Gil, the general manager of the Rancho Pescadero, told CBS News Los Angeles.
