Nearly nine months after beloved Santa Cruz surfer Kurt Van Dyke was brutally murdered in Costa Rica, the case has taken a stunning turn: police have arrested the woman who initially reported surviving the attack.
On Thursday, November 12, Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ) detained a 31-year-old woman identified by the surname Arroyo—Van Dyke’s girlfriend at the time of his death—and a 34-year-old man identified as Gutiérrez. Both are suspected of involvement in the killing, according to the Los Angeles Times and Costa Rican authorities.
See the latest development in the tragic case, linked here, and below.
Van Dyke, 66, was found dead on February 14 at a residence in Hone Creek, near Cahuita on Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast. His body was discovered beneath a bed.
As SURFER reported at the time, “Van Dyke’s body showed signs of asphyxiation and multiple stab wounds.”
The original account was horrifying. Arroyo reportedly told police that armed intruders had entered the home, restrained her with zip ties, killed Van Dyke, and fled with valuables and a Hyundai Elantra.
Now investigators suspect something far more calculated.
OIJ deputy director Vladimir Muñoz told local media that the suspects allegedly wanted PIN numbers for bank cards connected to Van Dyke’s hotel, Hotel Puerto Viejo.
Authorities believe Arroyo helped the attackers enter the house and that Gutiérrez arrived with two other men. Investigators allege Van Dyke was beaten and tortured after the men failed to obtain the information. They also suspect the reported car theft was staged; the vehicle was later recovered undamaged.
Related: California Surfer Kurt Van Dyke Brutally Murdered in Costa Rica
Police raided three properties and seized cellphones and another vehicle believed linked to the crime. Two additional suspects remain at large. Arroyo and Gutiérrez have been arrested on suspicion, not convicted. As of Thursday’s reporting, neither had been formally charged.
For surfers, Van Dyke was far more than another expat hotel owner. Raised in Santa Cruz by pioneering surfers Gene and Betty Van Dyke, he moved to Costa Rica in the 1980s, became a fixture at the powerful Salsa Brava reef break, and earned the nickname “King.”
“If there is a Steve McQueen of surfing, it would have been Kurt Van Dyke,” childhood friend Dave Smith said.
His brother Peter described him as “a benevolent person,” adding: “His passion was life, and surfing was a big part of that.”
The arrests mark a major development. But for Van Dyke’s family, friends and the surf community he helped shape, the loss remains devastating.
Related: Remembering Kurt Van Dyke, Surfer Killed in Costa Rica: ‘Total Shock’
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