American surfer Kurt Van Dyke found dead in apparent robbery at his home in Costa Rica
American surfer Kurt Van Dyke was found dead during an apparent robbery at his apartment in the Costa Rican Caribbean beach town of Cahuita on Saturday. He was 66 years old.
According to Costa Rica’s Office of Judicial Investigation (OIJ), the incident was reported around 10:50 a.m. when authorities received a call about a man found dead in a room.
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Law enforcement officials went to the municipality of Talamanca, about 65 miles east of the capital San Jose, and confirmed the death, according to OIJ spokesman Carlos Valverde.
Valverde said Van Dyke was in the apartment with a woman and claimed two armed men approached them. According to preliminary information, the suspects detained them for several minutes while threatening them with a firearm and stealing their valuables.
Authorities stated that Van Dyke died at the scene. “He had been strangled and had multiple stab wounds,” an OIJ spokesman said. The woman next to him suffered minor, non-life-threatening injuries.
The body was taken to the forensic medicine morgue to determine the exact cause of death. OIJ stated that it continues to investigate the case to clarify the circumstances of the incident and identify those responsible.
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Well-known surf family
Originally from Santa Cruz, California, Van Dyke became known in the international surfing community for his participation in competitions and his influence in promoting the sport in the Caribbean region.
He was also part of California’s well-known surfer family.
A 2021 obituary for her mother, Betty Van Dyke, noted that she was part of a group of pioneering female surfers and that her first husband, Gene Van Dyke, was also a well-known Northern California surfer, the Associated Press reported.
Peter Van Dyke, Kurt’s brother, said: San Francisco Chronicle via text: “My brother was a very helpful and helpful person, he could help anyone. Kurt would never hurt anyone and was always there when you needed him. Everyone he met knew that about him.”
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Raw Surf, a global media platform dedicated to sharing surf culture and stories around the world, expressed its condolences for the tragedy. “Our hearts go out to Kurt’s family and the Costa Rican surf community for this unimaginable loss,” a post on their Instagram account reads.
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