Karen Valentina Vega Peralta, a 20-year-old webcam model, and her close friend Nicol Cristina Amaya Díaz, also 20, were attacked and killed in an ambush while returning home in the early hours of Sunday morning. According to local reports, the two had been out with friends and were heading back when the incident occurred around 2:40 a.m.
Authorities say the attack involved masked individuals on motorcycles. The suspects opened fire before fleeing the scene, leaving investigators with a fast-moving and serious case that has now turned into a full-scale manhunt.
Local media outlet El Tiempo reported that Karen was believed to be romantically linked to a man with alleged ties to criminal activity. However, investigators have not confirmed any direct connection between that relationship and the attack. At this stage, officials are treating the case as an active homicide investigation, and multiple theories are being explored.
“It has been established that there was a romantic relationship with a man who belongs to a criminal organization,” Bucaramanga Metropolitan Police commander William Quintero confirmed, without identifying the gangbanger.
Peralta — who also worked as a nursing auxiliary — is thought to have been the chief target, with Diaz caught in the crossfire.
Diaz, a student with no criminal history, was rushed to a local hospital with bullet wounds but could not be saved.
Cops believe the motorcycle-riding killers followed the women from their night out and then ambushed them.
They are still hunting the killers, who fled on a blue and white Suzuki DR 150.
For now, both families are left mourning two young lives cut short in circumstances that remain unclear. The focus of authorities remains on tracking down those responsible and understanding the motive behind the attack.
While the investigation continues, the case stands as another painful example of how unpredictable and violent moments can permanently change multiple lives in just seconds.
