A Japanese tourist has become the fifth fatal foreign victim of violent crime Medellin this year after the man was shot dead for resisting in a robbery, local state media reported Sunday.
The 22-year-old Izaki Ryo was killed by two presumed minors who had robbed him of his cell phone and tablet.
The tragic incident happened around 4PM on Saturday, the day of the victim’s arrival to the city, the owner of the hostel where he was going to stay told the authorities.
The victim reportedly went after his attackers in an attempt to recover the stolen goods, but was shot twice after he had been able to grab one of the robbers, local newspaper El Colombiano reported.
Medellin violence and crime | Fact sheet
The fatal robbery took place in the Laureles district, near the city’s soccer stadium, generally considered a safe neighborhood for foreign visitors.
According to local state TV network Telemedellin, the victim is the fifth foreigner to be murdered in Medellin this year, a deplorable record for the city that has made major progress curbing homicides over the past 15 years, but has had trouble containing its robbery rates.
Colombia Reports can only confirm the killing of four foreigners.
Homicides in Medellin
Earlier this year, one Mexican, one Israeli and one Danish citizen were killed, in all but one cases in apparent robberies. One victim was accused of being involved in sex tourism.
The increase in homicides of foreigners in Medellin comes amid a major increase in foreign visitors, who had long been deterred to visit Colombia’s second largest city because of its history of extreme levels of drug-related violence.