California surfer killed in Costa Rica home invasion; girlfriend zip-tied, authorities say

[ad_1] A Californian surf legend was killed throughout a house invasion in Costa Rica on Saturday morning, an area information station reported.

Kurt Van Dyke, 66, was discovered useless underneath a mattress in his dwelling in Hone Creek, Cahuita, Talamanca, with a number of stab wounds and indicators of asphyxiation, in line with the Tico Occasions, a Costa Rican newspaper.

Van Dyke and his 31-year-old girlfriend had been confined in a single room by two armed male assailants in line with investigators, SURFER reported. The boys stole valuables earlier than attacking Van Dyke, in line with Costa Rican authorities quoted by the information web site.

His girlfriend, recognized solely by her final identify, Arroyo, was restrained with zip ties and had a 2013 Hyundai Elantra stolen off the property.

Costa Rican officers are investigating the killing however have made no arrests.

“We bear in mind your spirit, your power, and the sunshine you introduced into the lives round you. Some individuals depart footprints — you left waves,” Ronald Umaña, a buddy of Van Dyke’s, wrote on Fb.

Van Dyke, a Santa Cruz native, was a long-time Caribbean resident and owned Resort Puerto Viejo, a dorm-style hostel in Puerto Viejo de Telemanca.

“My brother was a really benevolent, giving one who would assist nearly anyone,” Kurt’s brother, Peter Van Dyke, advised the San Francisco Chronicle. “Kurt would by no means harm anyone, and he was all the time there while you wanted him. Everybody that he met knew this about him.”

Van Dyke was from a outstanding browsing household. His father, Gene Van Dyke, pioneered the game in Northern California within the Fifties.

His mom, Betty, who died in 2021 at 88, was a fifth-generation California farmer and one of many first feminine aggressive browsing champions on the planet.