A tourist who was fatally attacked by a crocodile in Puerto Vallarta has been identified by his grieving family, as images of the 12-foot reptile circulated online.
Irving Mauricio, 28, from Mexico City, died Friday evening after being mauled by a crocodile at a well-known beach in the resort destination, according to witnesses and officials. A vacationing family from San Clemente reportedly rushed in to try to help.
The incident took place at about 6:30 p.m. at Marina Vallarta Beach, near the Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort and Spa.
Authorities said Mauricio’s body was recovered early Saturday morning, roughly 12 hours after the attack.
His mother, Claudia Mauricio, later expressed her anguish in an emotional tribute posted online.
“You’ve broken my heart, my beautiful boy. Give me strength to go on,” she wrote. “Forgive me for not taking care of you as I would have liked. Forgive me, my son.”
Claudia said Mauricio is survived by his father, Ross, and his brother, Alexis.
“If I ever failed you as a mother, I ask you with all my heart to forgive me. I will never stop loving you,” she added. “If you loved me so much, I want you to know that I love you a thousand times more, my little Irving Mauricio.”
Mauricio’s mother closed the heartbreaking letter with a wish to be reunited with her son in heaven.
“I only ask God that on the day I leave this world, I may find you again and that you may greet me with that beautiful smile you always had for me,” she said. “You will always live in my heart.”
Maurico’s mutilated remains were found after allegedly being dragged into the water by the crocodile near a bar across from the Marriott Hotel in the northern hotel zone of Puerto Vallarta.
The search operation, which lasted throughout the night and involved land, sea, and air, ended with the discovery of Mauricio’s corpse at approximately 7:00 a.m. Saturday.
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The young man’s body was located in a local waterway approximately 500 meters offshore, near Bocanegra Beach, about 2.5 kilometers south of the hotel where the incident occurred. It wasn’t clear how or why Mauricio had entered the water.
Misael López Muro, director of Civil Protection and Firefighters of Puerto Vallarta, told local reporters that authorities were investigating the horrific attack.
“Right now we are doing the necessary procedures. The family members have already arrived and we are in communication with them,” Muro said.
As part of the search and rescue operation, a crocodile approximately 3.7 meters long was captured in the area where the incident occurred.
The reptile has been secured, and authorities are conducting a forensic examination to determine if it is connected to the attack on the young man.
Photos published online show the dramatic moment that the 12-foot beast was captured.
Five men are seen wrestling the massive creature on a lawn near a hotel in the pictures, straddling the huge reptile as one held its mouth shut.
Grainy nighttime footage captured the huge croc with its jaws open near Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa after the deadly attack.
San Clemente tourist Jamie Yetter, her fiancé Chris Bury, and her teenage daughter were staying at the hotel and relaxing by the pool when they heard screams from the beach.
“We thought we saw a guy stuck in a rip current, so Chris took off down to the water, and I ran right after him,” Yetter told NBC Los Angeles.
Crocodile attacks are more during the summer rainy season in Jalisco when the reptiles become more active in the estuaries, rivers, and coastal areas of tourism hot spots such as Puerto Vallarta, raising the risk of encounters with swimmers and tourists.
Muro said local residents and visitors must obey warning signs and avoid entering bodies of water where these reptiles have been reported, particularly in unsupervised areas.
Crocodile attacks are an ongoing threat that authorities in Puerto Vallar are trying to manage through surveillance operations and preventative education programs, he said.
“Fortunately, the body was located, an animal was captured, and the necessary procedures are already underway,” said Muro. “We want to assure the public that we remain committed to doing the work we must, and we regret this situation.”
