Two teenage sweethearts went missing after hitting the gym, only to be found brutally murdered three days later, according to local authorities.
Paloma Gallardo, 16, and her boyfriend Josue Salvatierra, 14, were last seen on January 30 in Florencio Varela, Argentina, before meeting an untimely end.
Paloma told her father she was going to the gym with Josue, but that was the last time she was seen. Police believe the couple died violently, beaten to death with a rock at a homeless encampment. Their bodies were eventually discovered in desolate terrain.
Paloma’s distraught father, evangelical pastor and YouTuber Omar Gallardo, identified her remains and told local reporters, “I can’t describe what had been done to my daughter’s body.”
Detectives suspect the young couple was targeted in a heinous robbery gone wrong, which resulted in their brutal murder. Only hours after leaving for the gym, both were unreachable, and their cell phones went silent.
Paloma’s mother, Alicia Pita, described the tense hours: “At 9 p.m., Josue’s father came to our house to ask about him, because he knew they had both gone to the gym together, but they never returned.”
“They weren’t attempting to flee from home; it wasn’t about rebellion or adventure. They suffered at the hands of heinous criminals. While we prayed for a different outcome, it appears that God had other plans.
The teenagers were neighbors and practically grew up together.
Paloma’s mother expressed her heartbreak, saying, “They stayed in the square like any other adolescent couple, they were happy, no fighting.
They adored each other, started out as friends, and began dating two months ago. “My daughter went out to the square and never returned.”
According to the investigation, Paloma and Josue died as a result of multiple violent blows to the head with a rock.
The autopsy results revealed that neither victim had been bound, and Paloma had not been sexually assaulted.
Police are reviewing local surveillance footage to find those responsible.
