Using a dating app in Colombia could cause more trouble for foreigners than anything else, warned the country's U.S. Embassy, which has noted numerous thefts involving drug overdoses that sometimes resulted in death.
“Over the past year, the Embassy has seen an increase in reports of incidents in which online dating apps were used to lure victims, usually foreigners, into violent robberies, or sedatives were used to drug and rob individuals.” said the embassy in a report released on January 10.
This was particularly the case with Carlos, an American expatriate living in Colombia who met a young woman on a dating app, CNN reported.
After a few drinks at home he felt “weird” and didn’t remember anything after that. After a hospital visit, he learned that he had been drugged. When he returned home, he discovered that several belongings were missing, including his passport and those of his children.
He would not be alone in this situation, according to the embassy, which is aware of eight suspicious deaths of Americans between November 1 and December 31, 2023, involving accidental drug overdoses or suspected homicides.
“Some of the deaths suggest that drugs, theft and overdoses may have been involved, and several involved the use of online dating applications,” the embassy said, adding that there does not appear to be any between the deaths connection exists.
The number of thefts committed against foreigners would have increased by 200% between the third quarter of 2023 and 2022, noted the Medellín District Tourism Observatory.
Violent deaths of visitors increased by 29% over the same period.