Woman's body found in suitcase in Bogotá building; investigation launched

Colombian authorities are investigating a grim discovery in Bogotá after a woman's body was found inside a suitcase in a building in the Chapinero locality. The macabre find has alarmed residents in the upscale northern district of the capital.

The incident was reported midday Monday at a building on Calle 95 with Carrera 21. Police and prosecutors arrived at the scene to conduct a forensic investigation. Members of the Fiscalía's Technical Investigation Corps (CTI) gathered initial evidence to launch a probe and identify those responsible for the crime.

Preliminary reports indicate the victim, originally from Cúcuta in the Norte de Santander department, was in a temporary apartment within the building. She was allegedly accompanied by a foreign national, who is currently being sought by the police. Investigators are examining who entered and exited the building in the days leading up to the discovery and are working to establish the relationship between the victim and the individual she was with.

This case bears a disturbing resemblance to the murder of young DJ Valentina Trespalacios in January 2023. Trespalacios was killed in her Bogotá apartment, and her body was subsequently placed in a blue suitcase and abandoned in a dumpster in the Fontibón locality, near El Dorado Airport. The perpetrator, American John Poulos, was later convicted and sentenced to 42 years in prison for the crime.

According to the Colombian Observatory of Feminicides, 621 women were murdered in Colombia up to September of the previous year. In 2024 alone, the country has recorded 886 femicides, highlighting a persistent issue of violence against women.