California surfer murdered in apparent robbery at his home in Costa Rica: reports

A prominent surfer from California was murdered at his home in Costa Rica during an apparent break-in over the weekend, according to reports.

Kurt Van Dyke, a 66-year-old expatriate who owned a hotel in the Costa Rican town of Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, was found dead Saturday inside his apartment, the Tico Times reported.

A preliminary exam indicated that Van Dyke’s body showed signs of asphyxiation and multiple stab wounds, the outlet reported.

Van Dyke, a native of Santa Cruz, California, was in the apartment Saturday morning when two armed men stormed inside, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. The men then held Van Dyke and his 31-year-old girlfriend, whom he shared the apartment with, in a room.

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The girlfriend survived the ordeal and told authorities that the men had bound her hands and feet with zip ties and assaulted her, according to the report. At some point during the incident, Van Dyke was killed, she said.

The girlfriend also said the men stole some of the couple’s valuables, including a 2013 Hyundai Elantra.

Security footage from the scene showed the two suspects fleeing the property in the Elantra and a second vehicle, the report said. 

No arrests have been made, and officials have yet to announce a motive.

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Van Dyke’s brother, Peter Van Dyke, remembered his brother as a kind soul in a text message to the Chronicle.

“My brother was a very benevolent, giving person who would help just about anybody,” Peter Van Dyke said. “Kurt would never hurt anybody, and he was always there when you needed him. Everyone that he met knew this about him.” 

Officials in Costa Rica said that Van Dyke’s death shocked the community.

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“I am deeply saddened,” Roger Sams, president of Costa Rica’s Southern Caribbean Chamber of Tourism and Commerce, told Costa Rican newspaper La Nación in Spanish. “We’ve had a long period of calm and tranquility.… This shocks and saddens us because the Caribbean has been so peaceful.”   

Van Dyke had developed a notable reputation among Santa Cruz’s surfing community before permanently settling in Costa Rica, where his skill surfing big waves earned him the moniker of “King” from the local surfing community, the Chronicle reported.