The 34-year-old nephew of fashion designer Carolina Herrera was found dead in a truck outside of Caracas in Venezuela, multiple outlets have reported.
Reinaldo Jose Herrera’s body was found on Thursday night, along with that of his business partner, 31-year-old Fabrizio Mendoza. From NBC Miami,
According to Venezuelan media reports, the men were abducted by a group while eating at a restaurant on the eastern part of Caracas Thursday night. Authorities said the group asked for ransom for Herrera and Mendoza.
The ransom was paid but Herrera and Mendoza were still killed, authorities said.
The news was initially reported by opposition leader Roland Carrano, who alerted the AP that Herrera was related to the designer. Carolina confirmed the report in an Instagram post on Saturday morning:
Originally from Venezuela, Carolina Herrera has lived on the Upper East Side of Manhattan for many years. Her home country, though, has been plagued by government unrest that’s been particularly acute in recent weeks. President Nicolas Maduro has been accused of delaying upcoming elections to avoid losing power amid an economic crisis that has resulted in stratospheric inflation and cataclysmic shortages of food, supplies and services.
Venezuela currently has one of the highest murder rates in the world.