An American Jewish tourist has been found dismembered inside an abandoned wardrobe on a street.
Nuchem Yasir Ebeth, a rabbi, had travelled to Bogotá to support and instruct a small congregation of Catholics who had converted to Judaism, according to Colombian media.
He was last captured on CCTV leaving his Airbnb at 9:07pm on 21 April. According to initial reports, he had gone out to meet someone.
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From that moment on, Nuchem, 51, went silent, stopped answering calls, and was quickly reported missing by his family.
Days later, in the early hours of Sunday (26 Apr), locals alerted authorities to a blue wardrobe with bloodstains around it, abandoned on a street on the other side of Bogotá.
Responding officers found the dismembered body of a man matching Nuchem’s description inside.
On Monday (27 Apr), he was confirmed to be the missing rabbi.
Nuchem was from Borough Park in Brooklyn, New York City, as reported by Need To Know.
He was a follower of the Belz Hasidic dynasty, a branch of ultra-Orthodox Judaism that originated in Eastern Europe.
According to US media, Nuchem may have been targeted by a criminal group specialising in robbing tourists.
The leading theory is that the killing took place during the theft of his personal belongings and identification documents.
However, other possible motives – including that he was lured under false pretences, or even terrorism – have not been ruled out.
The American Jewish Committee warned in September 2024 that Colombia’s president, Gustavo Petro, was “actively endangering his country’s Jewish community”.
It accused him of, among other actions, “severing ties with Israel and amplifying antisemitic messages”.
Colombian authorities are reportedly analysing the route taken by the vehicle that transported the wardrobe.
Arrangements are underway to repatriate Nuchem’s remains in accordance with his faith.
Bogotá’s Kehilat Yovel said in a statement: “The Yovel Messianic Community expresses its deepest condolences and its profound rejection of the regrettable and violent murder of Rabbi Nuchem Yisrael Eber, which recently occurred in our country.
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