According to a News Station, WAVY, Courtez Hall, 33 Kandace Florence and Jordan Marshall, both 28, had traveled to Mexico in late October to celebrate Dia De Los Muertos, or Day of the Dead. The three African-American friends were mysteriously found dead while staying at their Mexico City Airbnb over Halloween weekend, with their deaths eerily falling on country’s infamous The Day of the Dead festival and now their families want answers.
The News outlet also reports that Florence’s boyfriend, who did not go on the trip, was actually on the phone with her on the evening of October 30 when she said she started feeling sick and told him something was not right.
Florence’s boyfriend’s call then got disconnected and from there, he was unable to get a hold of her.
Florence’s boyfriend reached out to the Airbnb host
Eventually, he reached out to their Airbnb host to perform a welfare check, where local police ultimately discovered the lifeless bodies of Florence, Hall and Marshall.
The families of the deceased have since stated they have been in contact with the U.S. Embassy in Mexico, and have already travelled to Mexico City in person in search of answers regarding the deaths of their loved ones.
“The Mexican police were not very forthcoming with information,” Jennifer Marshall, Jordan’s mom, told the station WTKR. “Also, the language barrier was incredibly difficult as well.”
Marshall’s family are however yet to able to retrieve his personal belongings, including his wallet and laptop.
Kelvin Florence, Kandace’s father, has raised concerns that no Mexican officials had reached out to the families of the deceased to inform them of the incident.
Kandace’s and Jordan’s bodies are expected to be returned by to the United States in the coming days, the news outlet reports. The pair both grew up in Virginia Beach and graduated from the same high school back in 2011.
Jordan Marshall later became a teacher after moving to New Orleans, where he met and befriended fellow educator Courtez Hall.
Kandace, who would have turned 29 on Thursday, earned an associate’s degree in marketing in 2015 and launched her own candle-making company, Glo Through It, in 2020, according to her LinkedIn page.
Her mother described her as a “dreamer” who wanted to help others in their own lives.