The brutal murder of two children and their parents in a small town in Costa Rica has devastated the community of Copey, located in the Dota Valley, a region renowned for its quality coffee. Although the facts surrounding this horrible incident are somewhat cloudy, law enforcement agents and investigators are considering the possible involvement of a United States citizen.

It all started on Friday, when officers of Fuerza Publica, the national police force of Costa Rica, were called to scene of a gruesome murder in the Copey district of Santa Maria of Dota. Police found the body of 9-year old girl, who has been identified as Abigail, bound, gagged, severely beaten, and lying on a blood-soaked mattress. Abigail’s underwear had been removed, which suggests that she may have been sexually abused before being stabbed in her midsection.

Abigail’s 11-year old brother, Abraham, was found in a nearby coffee farm by K-9 officers on Saturday; he was also beaten and stabbed to death. Earlier that day, the parents were found on opposite banks of the Pirris River, of which a section is located about 200 meters behind the home of the departed family. The bodies of both Ramon Suarez and Maria Miranda showed wounds from a vicious stabbing, and they were covered by banana leaves. Lesions on the body of Ms. Miranda and the way her clothing had been ripped also suggest that she may have been raped before she died.

According to a news report filed by Manuel Estrada of daily tabloid Diario Extra, the Suarez Miranda family was originally from Nicaragua and had lived in Costa Rica about 10 years. Agents from the Office of Judicial Investigations (Spanish initials: OIJ) have not made any arrests, and they are still trying to figure out a motive for this atrocious slaughter.

One likely scenario being considered by investigators is that of a vengeance after a haphazard robbery in which the late Mr. Suarez may have been involved along with a taxi driver. The target of the alleged robbery was an expat resident from the United States, who apparently found out where Mr. Suarez lived and paid a visit to demand the return of the stolen money. Mr. Suarez ostensibly returned $3,000, which represented only a fraction of the total stolen; the suspect left enraged, issued death threats and swore that he would return. Mr. Suarez was once investigated for sexual assault, but it is not clear how that matter was eventually resolved.

It is important to understand that the OIJ does not wish to comment on the case at this time for the purpose of not tipping off the killer or killers, who may be monitoring news media reports. The information gathered by Mr. Estrada of Diario Extra comes from that newspaper’s network of informants and from members of the community. There is always a possibility that the OIJ may have strategically planted a decoy story; however, it bears noting that the border crossing points in Panama and Nicaragua were briefly locked down on Friday night. Border security personnel have received special instructions, and highway checkpoints are being conducted in certain regions.