Bronx native found dead in Colombia, family tried to convince him to stay

Torres tells News 12 that his stepson was identified through his tattoos. He says he believes he encountered the wrong people.

News 12 Staff

Sep 10, 2021, 2:28 AM

Updated 977 days ago

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A Bronx mother is mourning over the death of their beloved son who was reported missing while on vacation in Colombia. 
Felix Jose Almanzar, 31, would call his parents Francisco Torres and Dianna every morning at 7 a.m. 
They say they didn’t get their routine wake-up greeting from him and instead spent their Thursday evening delivering the devastating news to loved ones that their son’s body was found. 
The 31-year-old was vacationing in Colombia with his girlfriend and a group of nine friends. On his third day in the country, his family reported him missing once they learned that he didn’t return to his hotel room after getting into a fight with his girlfriend early Saturday morning. 
They say his body was found in another hotel three miles away from where he was staying. 
Torres tells News 12 that his stepson was identified through his tattoos. He says he believes he encountered the wrong people. 
He says both he and his wife tried to convince their son not to go to Colombia because they felt it was dangerous, but believed he shrugged the concerns due to how cheap the flight was. 
The Bronx family is now working with Colombian police and the Embassy of Colombia of New York to obtain surveillance footage from the hotel where his body was found. 
They say the case has been identified as a homicide. Their focus is on getting his body back to the Bronx, where they can say their final goodbyes.


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