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Three American friends who were mysteriously found dead inside their Mexico City Airbnb last month likely died of carbon monoxide poisoning, local authorities said Tuesday.

The bodies of Kandace Florence and Jordan Marshall, both 28, and Courtez Hall, 33, were discovered inside the vacation rental after they traveled to Mexico in late October to celebrate Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead.

Local autopsy reports cited by Bloomberg indicated the trio died from inhaling the deadly toxin.

On the night of Oct. 30, Florence was speaking on the phone to her boyfriend when she said she was beginning to feel ill and said something wasn’t right, according to the  station WAVY. The call was then dropped and Florence’s boyfriend, who was back in the US, couldn’t get ahold of her.

He reached out to the Airbnb host to request a welfare check and police showed up to the apartment that night. Officers noticed a strong stench of gas and found all three friends dead.

Local authorities are investigating their deaths.

In May, three American tourists died of carbon monoxide poisoning while staying at a luxury Sandals resort in the Bahamas.

In the US alone, roughly 430 people die a year from accidental CO poisoning and another 50,000 visit emergency rooms each year.

Marshall and Hall were both educators in New Orleans and Florence was a small business owner from Virginia Beach.

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3 Americans found dead in Airbnb while visiting Mexico to celebrate Day of the Dead

A trio of friends visiting Mexico City to celebrate the Day of the Dead were found dead in their Airbnb, officials and their families said on Wednesday.

Kandace Florence, 28, and Jordan Marshall, 28, both of Virginia Beach, Virginia, were staying at an Airbnb they were renting along with Marshall's friend, Courtez Hall, of New Orleans, their families told NBC News and NBC affiliate WAVY .

The group had traveled to Mexico City for Día de los Muertos, a holiday celebrated throughout the country on Nov. 1 and 2, their relatives said.

Florence had been on a phone call with her boyfriend on Oct. 30 when she told him she started feeling sick, according to WAVY . The call dropped suddenly and he was unable to reach her, so he contacted the Airbnb host and asked them to check on the group, WAVY reported.

When authorities arrived at the residence, Florence, Marshall and Hall were dead, WAVY reported. An official cause of death is still under investigation, according to NBC News.

The Mexico City attorney general’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NBC News.

The State Department confirmed the death of three U.S. citizens in Mexico in a statement to TODAY.

"We continue to monitor the Mexican authorities’ investigation into the death of three U.S. citizens and await public announcement of their official findings," a State Department spokesperson said. "We continue to provide all appropriate consular assistance to the families. Out of respect for the privacy of the families, we have nothing further to add at this time."

Jennifer Marshall, Jordan Marshall's mother, told NBC News the lack of response from the U.S. Embassy has been "pretty disheartening."

"It’s just very disheartening that we’ve had to piece together, as to the demise of our son, based on social media reports, based on investigative journalists, but this is where we are at this point," she said.

She said her son was a 12th-grade English teacher at Rosenwald Collegiate High School in New Orleans and that he loved to travel. "In his short 28 years, we can draw comfort from the fact he did travel and he did live a very, very full life," she said.

She added that as a parent, she worried about him traveling, but he usually traveled with groups of friends and she would tell him to stay together and stay vigilant.

"But we never tried to deter our son from living his best life and experiencing other cultures," she continued. "He loved history; he loved to learn about the cuisine and culture and the people of other places. So I never wanted him to live in fear and not to experience life because of things that could happen."

Hall was a seventh-grade history teacher at KIPP Morial School in New Orleans, his mother told NBC affiliate WDSU . Florence had started a candle company called "Glo Through It" in 2018 and would have turned 29 on Nov. 9, her mother, Freida   Florence, told WAVY.

Airbnb said it had removed the listing and canceled all upcoming reservations at the residence the trio had rented as it investigates the incident.

"This is a terrible tragedy, and our thoughts are with the families and loved ones as they grieve such an unimaginable loss," an Airbnb spokesperson said in a statement to TODAY. "Our priority right now is supporting those impacted as the authorities investigate what happened, and we stand ready to assist with their inquiries however we can."

WAVY reported the bodies of Florence, Marshall and Hall are expected to be flown back to the U.S. in the next few days.

Anna Kaplan is a news and trending reporter for TODAY.com.

Three U.S. tourists die in Mexico City Airbnb from carbon monoxide poisoning

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The mysterious deaths of three Americans in a Mexico City Airbnb: ‘I feel like I’ve been drugged’

The prosecutor’s office says that the tourists died of carbon monoxide poisoning, while relatives of the victims, one woman and two men, believe they were drugged at a bar.

In the early hours of the morning on October 30, Kandace Florence, 28, sent distressing messages to her boyfriend in which she told him she was not feeling well. “I feel like I’ve been drugged,” she told him. She had been at a Mexico City bar with two of her friends, Jordan Marshall, 28, and Courtez Hall, 33. They had traveled from the United States to attend Mexico’s Day of the Dead festivities. Hours later, the three US citizens were found dead in the Airbnb apartment they’d rented in the Cuajimalpa district, a wealthy area of the capital city. More than a week after their deaths, the victims’ families have little clarity about the circumstances in which their loved ones died in Mexico.

The Mexico City Prosecutor’s Office told EL PAÍS that it has opened an investigation, the initial findings of which indicate that Kandace, Jordan and Courtez died of carbon monoxide poisoning. Kandace’s boyfriend, Victor Day, 30, does not believe the authorities’ preliminary conclusion. “She told me she felt drugged before she went back to the apartment,” he told EL PAÍS. Airbnb did not answer any questions about its responsibility in this incident; it simply removed the ad for the apartment where the deaths occurred from its website.

At around 3am on Sunday, October 30, Victor began receiving strange messages from Kandace. This was the exchange:

-”I feel extremely tired,” she told him. I don’t feel well. I want to get home.

-What’s wrong? Is everything okay?

-I feel like I’ve been drugged. Like I’ve taken ecstasy, but I haven’t.

-Where’s Jordan? Are you home or are you still out?

-I just got here. I’m literally in pain and pacing around the apartment. I’m shaking.

Victor and Kandace then spoke on a video call. At times, he could hear her vomiting and retching. “She was visibly suffering,” he recalls. In Mexico City, slipping drugs into drinks has become modus operandi for committing abuses, especially against women. Victor asked Kandace if she ever left her drink unattended. “Mexico is not a country where you can be careless. It’s very dangerous,” he told her. Kandace assured him that she had not been careless at all. On her Instagram stories, Victor saw that the three friends had been drinking wine on an outdoor terrace with tables and plants, in a quiet and rather intimate atmosphere. They ended the call. Victor believed that she would be fine after she got some sleep. “I tried to call her again, but I didn’t get through. I told myself that maybe it was nothing; that she would throw up whatever they gave her, sleep, we would talk again in the morning, and she would tell me what happened. Unfortunately, that was the last time I spoke to her,” he says in a telephone interview from Virginia.

To date, the victims’ relatives do not know which bar they went to. “The Mexican authorities have not given the families any answers about what happened,” Victor laments. “They have only said that investigations are ongoing, but it’s been too long. It has been very difficult.” The US Embassy has assured EL PAÍS that it is closely monitoring the local authorities’ investigation and providing consular assistance to the families. Kandace would have turned 29 on November 10. She was an entrepreneur and had just started a candle business. Her friends, Jordan Marshall and Courtez Hall, were teachers in New Orleans. The three traveled to Mexico City on October 28 and planned to return home on November 1.

After trying to reach Kandace by text and calls for several hours on Sunday, Victor wrote to Jordan, who did not respond either. Victor remembered that Kandace had shared the link to the Airbnb apartment where the three friends were staying. He contacted the hostess to inform her of the situation. She told him she would ask the building’s security guards to check the apartment. Within 15 minutes, Victor says, the owner of the apartment called him back to tell him that, unfortunately, the three friends had been found lifeless in the apartment. The hostess said that she would call emergency services.

The Mexico City Prosecutor’s Office maintains that their deaths were caused by “possible poisoning from gas inhalation… Preliminary reports established that security guards at the residential complex where the events took place requested support from Secretariat of Citizen Security officials when they noticed a strong gas smell in an apartment,” the report, which was sent to this newspaper, stated. “In the apartment, the officers found the bodies of a woman and two men of US nationality, so they called for an ambulance; the paramedics determined that [the three Americans] were deceased. According to the forensic studies…the three persons in question died of carbon monoxide poisoning.”

Victor noted that the rental ad said that the apartment had carbon monoxide sensors. “If gas was the cause, how is it possible that the sensors did not go off to alert them? How is it possible that the security guards who found them were not poisoned as well? And how could Kandace tell me that she felt drugged long before she returned home?” he asks.

Family members expect the bodies of Kandace, Jordan and Courtez to be repatriated to the United States this week.

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3 American tourists found dead from carbon monoxide poisoning at Mexico City Airbnb, official says

MEXICO CITY -- Three Americans died from carbon monoxide poisoning while staying at a rented apartment in Mexico City, the city attorney general's office said.

The office began an investigation October 30, it said, looking into the "death of three foreigners, derived from possible poisoning by gas inhalation inside an apartment in the La Rosita, Cuajimalpa de Morelos." Expert studies indicate the gas was carbon monoxide, the attorney general's Tuesday statement said.

After detecting an intense smell of gas in the apartment, security guards at a residential complex requested support from local authorities, the statement said, and the agents who arrived found the bodies of a woman and two men.

Paramedics determined they were dead at the scene, the report said. The attorney general's office has ordered investigations.

The three Americans have not yet been publicly identified. The US Embassy confirmed the deaths to CNN affiliate WDSU, saying, "We are closely monitoring local authorities' investigation into the cause of death. We stand ready to provide all appropriate consular assistance. Out of respect for the privacy of the families, we have nothing further to add at this time."

Airbnb called the deaths a "terrible tragedy" and said it stood ready to assist with any inquiries.

"Our thoughts are with the families and loved ones as they grieve such an unimaginable loss. Our priority right now is supporting those impacted as the authorities investigate what happened," the online home rental company said in its statement.

News of the deaths comes just months after reports that three Americans died of carbon monoxide poisoning at a Sandals resort on Bahamas' Great Exuma island.

Two couples reported feeling ill the night of May 5 and were seen by medical staff, Bahamian police said.

The next day, Michael Phillips, 68, and his wife, Robbie Phillips, 65, of Tennessee, and Vincent Paul Chiarella, 64, of Florida, were found dead in their villas. Chiarella's wife, Donnis, 65, was airlifted to the capital, Nassau, for further treatment before being transferred to Florida.

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3 Americans in Mexico found dead in Airbnb likely from carbon monoxide poisoning

The bodies of Kandace Florence, Jordan Marshall and Courtez Hall were discovered in their Mexico City Airbnb rental property on Oct. 30.

Three families are mourning the loss of their loved ones, who died from what appears to be carbon monoxide poisoning while vacationing in an Airbnb property in Mexico.

According to People , Kandace Florence, 28, Jordan Marshall, 28, and Courtez Hall, 33, a friend of Marshall’s, were in Mexico City for its Day of the Dead celebrations, a holiday observed every year on Nov. 1 and Nov. 2.

“We can confirm the death of three U.S. citizens in Mexico,” a State Department spokesperson told the publication. “We are closely monitoring local authorities’ investigation into the cause of death. We stand ready to provide all appropriate consular assistance. Out of respect for the privacy of the families, we have nothing further to add at this time.”

Bloomberg reported that police were called to an apartment complex on Oct. 30 in La Rosita, a neighborhood near a wealthy area, after security guards noticed a strong gas smell. They arrived to find a woman and two men dead inside.

Their deaths coincide with a rise in American migration to Mexico, with its capital as the most popular destination. Using LPG and other gas sources there to heat homes and water has led to leaks, which is an uncommon occurrence, but has resulted in accidents and explosions.

According to People, Florence mentioned to her boyfriend while they were on the phone on Oct. 30 that she wasn’t feeling well. The call dropped, and when he could not get in touch with her again, he contacted the Airbnb host and requested that his girlfriend and her friends get a welfare check.

Florence and Marshall were childhood best friends in Virginia City, and Marshall and Hall worked together as educators in New Orleans.

WTKR News in Virginia reported that family members learned of their deaths as word began circulating across social media on Halloween.

“My son called me … He had to tell me three times: ‘Kandace is no longer with us. Kandace is no longer with us. Kandace’ — and I just lost it,” recalled Frieda Florence, her mother, WTKR reported.

“I saw my brother’s name and I read it,” said Jasmine Marshall. “My heart sank, and the hardest thing was to break the news to my mom.”

According to People, Marshall’s mother said the families still don’t know how he and his friends died because authorities in Mexico have not been very forthcoming with information. Communication is also challenging because of the language barrier.

Jennifer Marshall and Florence’s kin are actively seeking answers.

“The biggest question,” shared the grieving mother, “was ‘Where do we start?'” reported People.

Marshall’s body has already arrived in Virginia, and Florence’s body will arrive soon. Instead of a 29th birthday celebration, the family plans to honor her with a candlelight vigil on Thursday, Nov. 10.

Ceola Hall said she and her daughters last spoke to Courtez Hall a few days before the U.S. Embassy notified her of his death. The family has attempted to phone funeral facilities in Mexico, but, like Marshall’s mother, they found it difficult to understand or speak due to the language barrier.

“I would hate to see any parents go through what I went through with my son, I didn’t expect to hear this about my son,” said Hall, People reported. “No one expects that.”

TheGrio has reached out to Airbnb for comment.

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The post 3 Americans in Mexico found dead in Airbnb likely from carbon monoxide poisoning appeared first on TheGrio .

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Updated on: June 16, 2023 / 8:25 AM EDT / CBS/AP

Autopsies have revealed new information about the two Americans found dead in their luxury hotel in Mexico as the family of one of the victims told CBS News about the last communication they received from her.

Prosecutors in Mexico's Baja California Sur state said Thursday that autopsies suggest Abby Lutz and John Heathco died of "intoxication by an undetermined substance." Local police initially said gas inhalation was suspected as the cause of death.

The state prosecutors' office said the bodies bore no signs of violence. The office did not say what further steps were being taken to determine the exact cause of death.

Prosecutors said the two had been dead for 11 or 12 hours when they were found in their room at Rancho Pescadero, a luxury hotel near the resort of Cabo San Lucas late Tuesday.

Police said Wednesday that paramedics had received a report that the Americans were unconscious in their room. They were dead by the time paramedics arrived.

The Baja California attorney general's office said the two died from inhaling some sort of toxic substance, possibly carbon monoxide.

Lutz's family told CBS News that days before their deaths the couple was treated for what they thought was food poisoning. They spent Sunday night in a Mexican hospital where they were treated for dehydration, her family said. 

On Monday, they were back at their hotel.

"She said, it's the sickest she's ever been," said Lutz's stepsister, Gabby Slate, adding that Monday night was the last time the family heard from her.

"She texted her dad and said, 'good night, love you,' like she always does and that's the last we heard from her," said Lutz's stepmother Racquel Chiappini-Lutz.

According to a GoFundMe set up on behalf of the family, Lutz was supposed to meet up with her dad this week for Father's Day.

Prosecutors said Lutz and Heathco were from Newport Beach, California. The nutritional supplements company LES Labs, based in Covina, California, lists Heathco as its founder.

The U.S. Embassy in Mexico City was not able to immediately confirm the names or hometowns of the victims due to privacy considerations.

In a statement to CBS News Los Angeles, Henar Gil, the general manager of the Rancho Pescadero, said, "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."

There have been several cases of such deaths in Mexico due to poisoning by carbon monoxide or other gases. Proper gas line installations, vents and monitoring devices are often lacking for water heaters and stoves in the country.

In October, three U.S. citizens found dead at a rented apartment in Mexico City were apparently victims of gas inhalation.

In 2018, a gas leak in a water heater killed an American couple and their two children in the resort town of Tulum, south of Playa del Carmen.

In 2010, an explosion traced to an improperly installed gas line at a hotel in Playa del Carmen killed five Canadian tourists and two Mexicans.

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3 Americans dead in Mexico Airbnb from apparent carbon monoxide poisoning

Three Americans on vacation in Mexico City were found dead at an Airbnb-listed property that they had rented, according to the U.S. State Department and the property rental platform.

Two men and a woman died due to carbon monoxide poisoning at the property, Mexican police said, according to the Associated Press . They were found unresponsive on Oct. 30 at an apartment in the upscale Cuajimalpa district, according to the Spanish newspaper El País. The State Department did not release details on the deceased or their cause of death, though it said that U.S. officials were providing appropriate consular assistance.

Mexico City prosecutors did not return a request for comment sent late Wednesday. The families of the deceased couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

In a statement, Airbnb described the incident as a tragedy. The company said it had suspended bookings at the property where the deaths occurred. “Our priority right now is supporting those impacted as the authorities investigate what happened, and we stand ready to assist with their inquiries,” it added.

The trio went to Mexico to participate in the festivities marking the Day of the Dead , or Día de los Muertos. The holiday — which ran Oct. 31 to Nov. 2 — has its origins in ancient Aztec Indigenous traditions and commemorates death as an essential element of life.

The woman involved had told her boyfriend before her death that she felt like she had been drugged, according to El País, which viewed messages between the couple. “Like I’ve taken ecstasy, but I haven’t,” she reportedly wrote. She was also reportedly vomiting and said she was feeling fatigued.

Tourist drug demand is bringing cartel violence to Mexico’s most popular resorts

Around the time the three U.S. nationals died, three American siblings vacationing in Mexico also suffered carbon monoxide poisoning, according to a GoFundMe webpage set up by a family friend and local media reports. One of them died. The other two were hospitalized.

Carbon monoxide is an odorless and colorless gas that kills people by slowly depleting them of oxygen. When people breathe in the gas, it prevents red blood cells from carrying sufficient oxygen to critical organs such as the brain and heart. Initial symptoms may include dizziness and vomiting. More than 430 people are accidentally killed by the gas each year in the United States every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC advises Americans to install a carbon monoxide detector in their homes, and to check the batteries every six months. The gas can be found in fumes produced by furnaces, stoves, lanterns and gas ranges, or in areas near burning charcoal and wood. Infants, the elderly and people with chronic heart disease, anemia, or breathing problems are most at risk, according to the public health body .

Robyn Huang and Bryan Pietsch contributed to this report.

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3 American Deaths in Mexico Airbnb Possibly Caused by Gas Inhalation

Mexico City authorities are investigating the incident further after autopsy reports cited carbon monoxide poisoning as a possible cause of death, per reports

Three American travelers found dead at their Airbnb apartment rental in Mexico City Tuesday, may have been killed by gas inhalation.

Bloomberg reported Wednesday that security guards at the complex in the La Rosita neighborhood reported a strong smell of gas to police after the bodies of two men and one woman were discovered.

The autopsy reports also cited carbon monoxide poisoning as the possible cause of death, per Bloomberg , though Mexico City authorities are said to be investigating the incident further.

The American travelers have since been identified as Kandace Florence, 28, Jordan Marshall, 28, and Courtez Hall, 33. The trio were in Mexico's capital city for Dia de Los Muertos, which translates to Day of the Dead, a national Mexican holiday celebrated on Nov. 1 and 2.

"We can confirm the death of three U.S. citizens in Mexico," a State Department spokesperson told PEOPLE Tuesday. "We are closely monitoring local authorities' investigation into the cause of death. We stand ready to provide all appropriate consular assistance."

"Out of respect for the privacy of the families, we have nothing further to add at this time."

On Oct. 30, Kandace reportedly talked to her boyfriend on the phone and told him she wasn't feeling well, Norfolk, Virginia, news station Wavy.com reported Tuesday. She then began to get sick and the call dropped. After he was unable to get a hold of Kandace, her boyfriend contacted the Airbnb host and asked if they could check on the three tourists. Authorities arrived and they were all found dead.

The travelers' families have since spoken out on their tragic loss.

Jordan's sister Jasmine Marshall recalled finding out the heartbreaking news via social media on Oct. 31.

"I saw my brother's name and I read it, and my heart sank, and the hardest thing was to break the news to my mom," an emotional Jasmine told CBS affiliate WTKR.

Jordan's mother, Jennifer Marshall, said the families still have no confirmation about how he and his friends died, telling WTKR, "The Mexican police were not very forthcoming with information. Also, the language barrier was incredibly difficult as well."

Jordan's body has arrived in his and Kandace's home state of Virginia. Kandace's body will also arrive in Virginia soon. The family plans to hold a candlelight vigil on what would have been her 29th birthday on Thursday, Nov. 10.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Courtez's mother shared that he was a social studies teacher at KIPP Memorial School in New Orleans.

"It's been so hard," she told the outlet. "We tried calling back over there for the funeral homes. Because of the language barrier and stuff you cannot get anything through or really understand."

Added Ceola: "I would hate to see any parents go through what I went through with my son, I didn't expect to hear this about my son. No one expects that."

PEOPLE reached out to Airbnb for comment but did not immediately hear back.

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3 american tourists were killed by a carbon monoxide leak in the bahamas in may.

Carbon monoxide responsible for death of American in the Bahamas: Report

Fox News medical contributor Dr. Marty Makary on American tourists' deaths in the Bahamas, calls out CDC vaccine advisory panel pushing for COVID boosters in children

Three American tourists were found dead in their Mexico City Airbnb in what authorities say is most likely a case of carbon monoxide poisoning.

The bodies of 28-year-olds Kandace Florence and Jordan Marshall, and 33-year-old Courtez Hall were found in an Airbnb vacation rental last month after the trio traveled to Mexico City to celebrate Dia de los Muertos, also known as Day of the Dead, New York Post reported .

Autopsy reports showed the three Americans likely died from inhaling carbon monoxide fumes, according to Bloomberg.

Florence was reportedly speaking with her boyfriend on the phone on the night of Oct. 30 when she told him that she was feeling sick and suggested that something did not feel right. The call was then dropped and her boyfriend, who was in the United States, was not able to reach her again.

MORE THAN 2 DOZEN PENNSYLVANIA CHILDREN, TEACHING AIDES HOSPITALIZED AFTER CARBON MONOXIDE LEAK AT DAY CARE

Left to right: Courtez Hall, Kadence Florence, Jordan Marshall (Facebook)

The boyfriend contacted the Airbnb host to request a welfare check, and police arrived at the scene to find all three friends dead along with a strong stench of gas. 

"We can confirm the death of three U.S. citizens in Mexico," a spokesperson for the State Department told Fox News Digital in a statement. "We are closely monitoring local authorities’ investigation into the cause of death. We stand ready to provide all appropriate consular assistance."

OH CARBON MONOXIDE APARTMENT LEAK KILLS 1, INJURES 10

Kandace Florence, left, and Courtez Hall. (Facebook)

The deaths come several months after three American tourists were killed by carbon monoxide poisoning at an all-inclusive Sandals resort in the Bahamas in May.

Carbon monoxide is especially dangerous because it is an odorless gas. Individuals do not realize they are exposed to it until they become symptomatic. 

CARBON MONOXIDE LEAK DETECTED AT KANSAS CITY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, 8 TAKEN TO HOSPITAL

Health experts advise it is vital to have carbon monoxide detectors installed in homes, rental units, hotel rooms and more — and to know and confirm that indeed, they are placed there and fully operational during any vacation stay, no matter how short or long. 

The presence of carbon monoxide in hotels is an issue travelers should have on their radars, according to a study published in Preventive Medicine Reports in 2019.  

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Tourists with their face painted as skeletons listen to a tour guide explain about the event history during 'Day of the Dead' celebrations on Nov. 2, 2022  ((Photo by Jonny Pickup/Getty Images))

The authors of that study discovered that from Jan. 1, 2005 to Dec. 31, 2018, more than 900 guests traveling in the U.S. were poisoned in 115 identified incidents — including 22 fatalities. The type of lodgings where the odorless gas was present included hotels, motels and resorts of all classes and located in a majority of states, the study said. 

Americans tourists have faced dangers traveling to Mexico in several instances this year, including a man who says he was kidnapped at knife-point and violently attacked while vacationing with his wife.

This summer, two American tourists were injured in Mexico after being attacked by a crocodile . 

Fox News’ Amy McGorry contributed to this report

Andrew Mark Miller is a reporter at Fox News. Find him on Twitter @andymarkmiller and email tips to [email protected].

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Crime and Public Safety | 3 American tourists found dead at Airbnb in…

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Crime and public safety | two san jose police officers shot and wounded while investigating hotel disturbance, crime and public safety, crime and public safety | 3 american tourists found dead at airbnb in mexico city, official says.

Three Americans died from carbon monoxide poisoning while staying at a rented apartment in Mexico City, the city attorney general’s office said.

The office began an investigation October 30, it said, looking into the “death of three foreigners, derived from possible poisoning by gas inhalation inside an apartment in the La Rosita, Cuajimalpa de Morelos.” Expert studies indicate the gas was carbon monoxide, the attorney general’s Tuesday statement said.

After detecting an intense smell of gas in the apartment, security guards at a residential complex requested support from local authorities, the statement said, and the agents who arrived found the bodies of a woman and two men.

Paramedics determined they were dead at the scene, the report said. The attorney general’s office has ordered investigations.

The three Americans have not yet been publicly identified. The US Embassy confirmed the deaths to CNN affiliate WDSU , saying, “We are closely monitoring local authorities’ investigation into the cause of death. We stand ready to provide all appropriate consular assistance. Out of respect for the privacy of the families, we have nothing further to add at this time.”

Airbnb called the deaths a “terrible tragedy” and said it stood ready to assist with any inquiries.

“Our thoughts are with the families and loved ones as they grieve such an unimaginable loss. Our priority right now is supporting those impacted as the authorities investigate what happened,” the online home rental company said in its statement.

News of the deaths comes just months after reports that three Americans died of carbon monoxide poisoning at a Sandals resort on Bahamas’ Great Exuma island.

Two couples reported feeling ill the night of May 5 and were seen by medical staff, Bahamian police said.

The next day, Michael Phillips, 68, and his wife, Robbie Phillips, 65, of Tennessee, and Vincent Paul Chiarella, 64, of Florida, were found dead in their villas. Chiarella’s wife, Donnis, 65, was airlifted to the capital, Nassau, for further treatment before being transferred to Florida.

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Suspect arrested in death of Mexico ‘tummy tuck’ tourists as US vows ‘justice will be done’

The group was taken hostage on friday after entering the state of tamaulipas in matamoros – an area dominated by the gulf cartel, article bookmarked.

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The FBI and Mexican authorities have made an arrest in the deaths of two American citizens killed in the state of Matamoros.

The tragic news was revealed on a televised call between Tamaulipas Governor Américo Villarreal and Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador on Tuesday. Another person was found wounded while a fourth was unharmed — they are back in the US, according to the Tamaulipas Attorney General.

The group was identified by family on Monday as Shaeed Woodard, Zindell Brown, who were killed in the abduction, and Eric James Williams and Latavia “Tay” McGee . They were taken hostage on Friday (3 March) after entering the state of Tamaulipas in Matamoros – an area dominated by the Gulf cartel.

Ms McGee was unharmed while Mr Williams suffered a gunshot wound on his leg but is expected to recover. They’ve both returned to the US.

A suspect, 24-year-old Jose “N,” has been arrested. The man was tasked with making sure the victims didn’t escape during the three-day kidnapping and he was captured at the scene on Tuesday, Mr Villareal said.

• Mexico kidnapping — live: Two Americans kidnapped in Matamoros on ‘tummy tuck’ trip are found dead
• Four Americans kidnapped at gunpoint in Mexico identified as group of friends who travelled for tummy tuck
• Two of four Americans kidnapped in Mexico ‘tummy tuck’ trip are found dead

The American citizens came under fire from a group of armed men and were then bundled into the back of a pickup truck. A family member of one of the victims has said that they travelled from South Carolina to Matamoros because one of them was getting a tummy tuck there.

US officials familiar with the investigation told CNN that authorities believe a Mexican cartel mistook the victims for Haitian drug smugglers.

They were found at a stash house in a rural area east of Matamoros called Ejido Longoreño on the way to the local beach known as Playa Baghdad, a source close to the investigation told the AP. Pictures by the AP showed the rescue.

Mr López Obrador said that one person has been arrested and the FBI continues to work along with Mexican authorities in the case. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby decried the attack on the American citizens and vowed to get justice for their families.

“We appreciate the hard work of the Justice Department the FBI and the DEA and the Department of Homeland Security … we’re grateful for their swift response to this dreadful incident and for their continued collaboration with Mexican authorities,” Mr Kirby told reporters.

“We’re going to work closely with the Mexican government to ensure that justice is done in this case.”

When asked whether the White House was considering policy changes in response to the attack, Mr Kirby said that there were no immediate remedies but insisted US authorities are working extensively to get the fatal victim’s bodies and the survivors back on American soil.

”Right now our focus is very squarely on these four Americans and the families that have been affected by the attack and I think you’ll hear more from the Justice Department as they learn more and can have more to share,” he added. “But it’s just too soon for me to be able to speak to any policy changes or, or vectors as a result of this attack.”

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Tuesday that any attacks on American citizens under any circumstances were unacceptable.

Ms Jean-Pierre said more information will be released after family members of the two fatal victims and two kidnapping survivors are updated by US officials on any developments made in the case.

She also noted that the Biden administration remains committed to “disrupting transnational criminal organizations including Mexican drug cartels and human smugglers.”

“We remain committed to applying the full weight of our efforts and resources to counter them,” Ms Jean-Pierre said.

“Right now. our immediate concerns are for the safe return of our citizens, the health and well-being of those who survived this attack, and the support which must be rendered to the families of those who need it.”

Mexican officials said that the two surviving Americans are back on US soil.

Mr Lopez Obrador also claimed that the tragedy will be seized by the American media to portray Mexico as a dangerous country, in stark contrast with their “silence when Mexicans are killed in the US.” He went on to say that GOP politicians will also use the crime as an opportunity to push “their agenda.”

“We continue to work every day towards peace and are very sorry that this has happened in our country,” President López Obrador said during the press conference.

“We send our condolences to the victims’ friends and family and the American people. And we will continue to work towards peace.”

The group of four were travelling in a white minivan with North Carolina licence plates when they crossed the US border into Mexico on 3 March.

Ms McGee’s mother Barbara Burgess said she was worried about her daughter going and warned her it might not be safe. But, her daughter brushed off her concerns telling her: “Ma, I’ll be okay”.

Ms Burgess last heard from Ms McGee on Friday when she called to say that they were just 15 minutes from the cosmetic surgeon’s office where she was scheduled to have the procedure that day. She never heard from her daughter again.

Ms Burgess said she tried calling Ms McGee later that day but her phone went straight to voicemail.

Not long later, she said she received a visit from an FBI agent, revealing what had happened.

Mr Brown’s sister Zalandria Brown told the AP that the situation felt like a “bad dream” as she revealed that her younger brother had voiced concerns about travelling to such a dangerous place.

“Zindell kept saying, ‘We shouldn’t go down,’” she said.

But Mr Brown, a 28-year-old living in Myrtle Beach, still went on the trip with his three friends – in part because they had all agreed to help share driving duties.

“This is like a bad dream you wish you could wake up from,” said Ms Brown. “To see a member of your family thrown in the back of a truck and dragged, it is just unbelievable.”

Mr Brown’s mother Christina Hickson told WPDE she “immediately” recognised him in the disturbing video circulating on social media.

The video, which has not been verified, shows armed men loading four people into the bed of a white pickup truck.

While one individual is moving and sitting upright, the other three are merely dragged limp into the vehicle.

Mr Williams’ North Carolina diver’s license was found at the scene of the abduction, reported ABC News.

The US State Department is advising Americans not to travel to Tamaulipas due to the risk of crime and kidnapping. The region is on the “Level 4: Do Not Travel” list.

The border city of Matamoros is largely controlled by the Gulf drug cartel, with violence and migrant smuggling rife.

A reward of $50,000 had been offered for information leading to the return of the victims and the arrest of the kidnappers.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the FBI San Antonio Division at 210-225-6741 or to submit tips anonymously online at https://tips.fbi.gov

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2 Americans found dead in hotel room in Mexico's Baja California Sur

CABO SAN LUCAS, Mexico — Police in a seaside community on Mexico’s Baja California peninsula said Wednesday that two Americans have been found dead in their hotel room.

Police said the deaths occurred in the community of El Pescadero on Tuesday. The town is located between Todos Santos and the resort of Los Cabos, in Baja California Sur state.

U.S. officials said they were aware of the case but could not comment on it because of privacy concerns. There was no immediate information on the names or hometowns of the victims.

According to a police, paramedics received a report Tuesday that the Americans were unconscious in their room. They were dead by the time paramedics arrived. The suspected cause of death was inhalation of gas.

There have been several cases of such deaths in Mexico due to poisoning by carbon monoxide or other gases. Such gases are often produced by improperly vented or leaky water heaters and stoves.

Last year, three U.S. citizens were found dead at a rented apartment in Mexico, apparently victims of gas inhalation.

The Mexico City police department said the three were found unresponsive Oct. 30 in an upscale neighborhood. They had apparently rented the dwelling for a short visit. Post-mortem examinations suggested the two men and one woman died of carbon monoxide poisoning.

In Mexico, proper gas line installations, vents and monitoring devices are often lacking.

In 2018, a gas leak in a water heater caused the deaths of an American couple and their two children in the resort town of Tulum, south of Playa del Carmen.

An inspection revealed that the water heater at the rented condominium was leaking gas. Prosecutors said the gas leak was perhaps caused by a lack of maintenance or the age of the equipment.

In 2010, the explosion of an improperly installed gas line at a hotel in Playa del Carmen killed five Canadian tourists and two Mexicans .

In that case, prosecutors said the gas line, apparently meant to fuel a pool heating unit, was not properly installed or maintained. They said gas leaking from the line may have been ignited in an explosion by a spark from an electric switch or plug.

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Two Americans found dead at Mexico resort died from inhaling toxic gas

Workers at luxury hotel where John Heathco and Abby Lutz died report managers had disabled carbon monoxide alarms

Two Americans whose bodies were found in their room at a resort in the Mexican state of Baja California Sur on 13 June died from inhaling toxic gas, according to officials’ preliminary findings.

The couple – identified as 41-year-old John Heathco and 28-year-old Abby Lutz, of California – had reportedly been dead between 10 and 11 hours before being discovered in their room at the oceanfront Hyatt Rancho Pescadero Hotel in El Pescadero, Mexico. The cause of death was ruled as intoxication of an unspecified gas substance that local officials as of Saturday were still working to determine.

In an interview with Good Morning America, one of the paramedics who arrived on the scene to treat Heathco and Lutz claimed he and a colleague immediately experienced dizziness after entering the room. The hotel manager claimed there was no gas leak of any kind in the hotel.

Lutz’s family members claimed she reported to them on Monday that she experienced food poisoning and received medical treatment on Sunday night but did not hear from her after that.

Current and former employees at the luxury resort told the Los Angeles Times that managers ignored possible signs of gas leaks for months and had disabled carbon monoxide alarms in the hotel because they were disturbing guests.

“They knew there were problems with gas leaks,” said Ricardo Carbajal, a former night manager at the resort who stopped working at the resort in March after a dispute over pay. “Everyone was aware of the alarms and that the detectors were off.”

Three current employees confirmed the detectors were disabled and claimed management ignored for months complaints of strong gas smells from guests and employees and that just days prior a housekeeper fell ill cleaning the room where the two Americans were found dead.

Hyatt officials previously denied suspicions the deaths were related to gas leaks but did not comment on claims from current and former workers.

The deaths of Heathco and Lutz are under investigation after three other Americans died from carbon monoxide poisoning in a Mexico City home that they rented ahead of Day of the Dead celebrations in the fall of last year.

The dead in that case were Jordan Marshall, 28; Courtez Hall, 33; and Kandace Florence, 28.

An odorless gas, carbon monoxide is in the fumes from fuel burned in cars, stoves, grills, lanterns, furnaces or fireplaces, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Inhaling the gas for a prolonged time can be deadly. Symptoms which can alert people that they are inhaling carbon monoxide include headaches, dizziness, weakness, vomiting, chest pain, upset stomach and confusion.

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4 found dead in hotel area of Mexico’s Cancun beach resort

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MEXICO CITY (AP) — Authorities in the Mexican resort of Cancun said Monday they have found four dead bodies in the city’s hotel zone near the beach.

There was no immediate information on the nationalities or identities of the victims. The announcement of the deaths came less that a week after a U.S. tourist was shot in the leg in the nearby town of Puerto Morelos.

Prosecutors originally said three bodies were found Monday in a lot near one of Cancun’s beachside hotels along the Kukulkan Boulevard. They then added that a fourth body was found in the undergrowth on the same lot, brining to four the number of victims.

Prosecutors in the Caribbean coast state of Quintana Roo said two suspects had been detained in the killings. They said the deaths were under investigation, but did not give a cause of death.

Last week in Puerto Morelos, a U.S. tourist was approached by several suspects, and they shot him in the leg. The motive remains under investigation. The wounded man was taken to a hospital in Cancun for treatment, and his injury was judged to be not life-threatening.

The U.S. State Department issued a travel alert earlier this month warning travelers to “exercise increased caution,” especially after dark, at Mexico’s Caribbean beach resorts like Cancun, Playa del Carmen and Tulum, which have been plagued by drug gang violence in the past.

There have been a series of brazen acts of violence along the Caribbean coast, the crown jewel of Mexico’s tourism industry.

In 2022, two Canadians were killed in Playa del Carmen, apparently because of debts between international drug and weapons trafficking gangs.

In 2021, farther south in the laid-back destination of Tulum, two tourists — one a California travel blogger born in India and the other German — were killed when they apparently were caught in the crossfire of a gunfight between rival drug dealers.

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Three friends drove from California to Mexico for a surfing trip. Then they disappeared

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Last month, two brothers and one of their friends crossed from the United States into Mexico to explore Baja California’s famous surf breaks. One of the brothers, Callum Robinson, 33, posted snapshots of their journey on Instagram, showing the men gazing out at the ocean with cups of coffee, enjoying street tacos and relaxing with beers on a roof deck.

After a stretch of camping, the friends were supposed to check into an Airbnb in Rosarito Beach last weekend. But they never arrived. Their relatives say the last time they heard from the men was April 27.

Their disappearance in one of Mexico’s most violent states has triggered a massive search involving local authorities, the FBI and the Mexican marines.

“We are looking for them on land and at sea,” Baja California Atty. Gen. María Elena Andrade Ramírez said Thursday. “We are making every effort.”

Authorities said they had questioned three people in the case and had located the pickup truck the men were traveling in. At a news conference on Thursday, Andrade would not confirm whether the three people questioned were considered suspects. She said authorities had also recovered a cellphone that was relevant to the investigation.

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Callum, a lacrosse player, and his brother, Jake, a 30-year-old doctor, are both Australian nationals. Their friend, Carter Rhoad, 30, is from Atlanta and founded an online apparel company in San Diego, according to his Facebook profile.

The group was last seen near Santo Thomas, about 70 miles south of Rosarito, authorities said.

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Debra Robinson, Jake and Callum’s mother, appealed for help on social media, noting that Callum is diabetic. “This is a very dire situation,” she said.

Baja California’s rugged coastline and epic waves have long attracted surfers from north of the border. In recent years, the state has been convulsed in violence, much of it connected to the drug trade. Last year, authorities recorded 2,116 homicides in the state — giving it one of the highest homicide rates in Mexico.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who is serving his last year in office, ran on a promise of reducing violence in Mexico. While homicides nationally have dipped slightly during his six-year-term, they continue to hover near record highs.

Cecilia Sánchez Vidal in the Times’ Mexico City bureau contributed to this report.

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Kate Linthicum is a foreign correspondent for the Los Angeles Times based in Mexico City.

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Four killed near Cancun beach resorts; two suspects detained, Mexican officials say

Mexican officials confirmed Monday they discovered four dead bodies in a hotel area in the popular resort town of Cancun. 

The deaths, ruled homicides, took place on Kukulcán boulevard near the popular Paradisus Cancun and Fiesta Americana resorts , according to the Quintana Roo Attorney General’s office , and come just weeks after the U.S. Embassy in Mexico issued a travel advisory for popular spring break tourist destinations in Mexico, including Cancun. 

Mexican officials say they swept the area near the hotel and detained two suspects. 

“The victims are connected with drug dealing activities, ruling out that they might be hotel workers or tourists,” said Quintana Roo security official José de la Peña Ruiz de Chávez .

Last week, an American tourist took a bullet to the leg in a late night shooting by assailants in Puerto Morelos, a small resort town just south of Cancun. The tourist survived, but the motive for the attack was unclear. 

$40,000 reward: FBI offers reward after American woman kidnapped in Mexico while walking her dog

Should travelers worry?: Travel experts discuss safety in Mexico.

Quintana Roo officials on Monday offered the public a 1,000,000 Mexican peso, roughly $55,000, reward for information leading to the arrest of a third suspect identified in the Cancun killings as Héctor Elías Flores Aceves, known as “El 15,” a suspected Sinaloa Cartel operative in the area who has in the past been linked by Mexican news reports to other attacks in Cancun. 

Monday’s killings unfolded as many in the country set off on spring break vacation, which typically lands on Holy Week or “Semana Santa” leading up to Easter Sunday. 

Quintana Roo, a tropical state on Mexico’s Caribbean coast, is on the State Department’s “Exercise Increased Caution” list due to “crime and kidnapping” risk.

The State Department has warned Americans not to travel to a handful of other Mexican states, including Tamaulipas, where two Americans were abducted and two were killed last month in the border city of Matamoros. 

Contributing: The Associated Press