_{(Top) Imane Mallah, Wafae El-Arar (Bottom) Koutar Naqqad; all deceased}

Three young female tourists found dead in San Pedro hotel room

by Charles Gladden

SAN PEDRO, Ambergris Caye, Mon. Feb. 24, 2025

Three young female tourists were found dead on Saturday, February 22, in their hotel room at the Royal Kahal Resort on Coconut Drive in San Pedro Town.

The deceased women—24-year-old Imane Mallah, 26-year-old Wafae El-Arar, and 23-year-old Koutar Naqqad—were all of US-Moroccan nationality.

According to reports, the hotel maid arrived at the women’s room to carry out her regular duties and knocked at the door, but there was no answer, so she left.

_{Royal Kahal Beach Resort}

When she returned the following day, she once again knocked at the door, but again there was no response. She therefore informed the hotel’s management, who got the master key, opened the room, and discovered the three motionless women.

According to reports describing the scene, one of the women was found partially nude on a bed, covered with a white sheet, with vomit coming from her mouth. Another was found face-down near the bathroom, wearing a leopard-print dress; and the third was found lying near a table, dressed in a pink blouse and short pants.

“Based on what the pathologist said when he visited on Saturday evening, they could have been dead 20 hours prior, so that would take us back to Friday or Thursday when they eventually died … We’re trying to do as best as we can, including to see where they may have gone on Thursday before they went [to the room], what if anything they consumed, all these things we’re looking at; and again, the post-mortem will be looking at some content which I have to determine if it was something that they digested,” said Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams.

Notably, there were no signs of physical injuries on the women’s bodies, and there is currently speculation that their deaths might have been caused by an overdose of drugs. According to Commissioner Williams, several bottles of alcohol and THC gummies were found in the women’s room.

“Those gummy bears are not produced in Belize. Certainly, we will be investigating to see if they brought those into the country with them. Perhaps it could be they brought it in. So, there are certain things I have instructed the investigators to do so that we [can] verify if that came into the country with them,” Williams said.

Belizean police are currently in dialogue with the US Embassy as they proceed with an investigation.

“They are active in investigation. Whatever information we get [we] share with them. We do understand the national implication and the right of the family to be able to know what’s taking place through the embassy; and so [we] remain in direct communication with them; and [in] some instances, they are on the ground assisting with the investigation and getting whatever information they need, so that they can [give] feedback to the family members,” ComPol Williams said.

The women had arrived in the country on Thursday, and were expected to depart on Sunday, February 23.