The Jalisco State Attorney General’s Office confirmed that the cause of death of four young architects, found dead on January 18 in a cabin in the municipality of Gómez Farías, was carbon monoxide poisoning, allegedly caused by a gasoline-powered generator.
This conclusion was reached after specialized forensic examinations of the property and autopsies performed by the Jalisco Institute of Forensic Sciences (IJCF), ruling out, for the time being, the possibility of a direct attack.
The deceased have been identified.
Julio Enrique Zarco Vázquez, 24 years old
Patricia Jaqueline Venegas Nieves, 24 years old
Karina Jacqueline Rodríguez Arias, 26 years old
Daisy Mariana Anguiano Larios, 26 years old
All were architects and shared a close friendship. Julio, Patricia, and Karina were from Ciudad Guzmán, while Daisy was from Sayula.
The four young people went to a cabin called Hacienda Rodríguez Anaya for a weekend getaway. The cabin is located in the town of El Corralito, a wooded area far from cell phone service, about an hour from their homes and near the municipality of Unión de Guadalupe.
The property is rented out for weekends, nestled among trees and without access to conventional services, which necessitates the use of backup generators.
The bodies were discovered around 10:50 p.m. on Sunday, after workers in the area detected a strong smell of smoke coming from inside the house.
Upon investigation, they observed that the smoke was coming from a gasoline-powered generator, installed inside a storage shed structurally connected to the rest of the house, which would have allowed the carbon monoxide to spread to all the rooms.
Initially, other hypotheses were not ruled out, such as the possible consumption of spoiled food or drinks. However, after forensic analysis, the Prosecutor’s Office confirmed that the official cause of death was carbon monoxide poisoning, a highly toxic, colorless, and odorless gas.
Experts from the Jalisco Institute of Forensic Sciences (IJCF) conducted:
Technical inspection of the property
Collection of evidence
Environmental analysis
Legal autopsies
The results point to a lethal accumulation of the gas, resulting from the use of the generator in a space without adequate ventilation.
The tragedy generated a strong reaction on social media, where family and friends expressed their grief.
Jackie passed away accompanied by Julio, Paty, and Mariana. “They all left together, amidst dreams, triumphs, and hopes,” wrote Karina Jacqueline’s brother.
In October 2024, Karina had announced her graduation as an architect from the National Technological Institute of Mexico.
For their part, relatives of Julio and Patricia shared:
“May their love last forever and may they continue to support each other in the next life as they did in this one.”
Risks of Carbon Monoxide in Rural Areas
Authorities reiterated the importance of adequate ventilation and technical inspections in spaces that use combustion-powered generators, especially in rural areas or tourist cabins, where these types of accidents often go unnoticed until a tragedy occurs.
Source: excelsior
