Friends, family of 3 American women who died at Belize beach resort cast doubt on possible overdose theory

Family and friends of the three young American women found dead at a Belize beach resort over the weekend expressed doubts that the trio overdosed as suggested by local police in the Central American country.Loved ones of Kaoutar Naqqad, 23; Imane Mallah, 24; and Wafae El-Arar, 26, remembered the friends as cherished, respectful and valued members of their Revere, Massachusetts community at a vigil Tuesday.Several attendees said the reports theorizing that the pals overdosed didn’t match the women they knew and loved and slammed Belize authorities for an alleged lack of transparency, according to WCVB.A friend of all three women said Mallah, who she had known since she was 7 years old, was not into partying and drinking.

“It’s very frustrating because when you hear possible OD, automatically you attribute characteristics to that person, but that could be the farthest thing from the truth,” Hajar El Khalfaoui said, according to the Boston-based news station.“When I graduated, Imane didn’t want me to go to a party, she said she didn’t want to go because there would be drinking there.

That was the kind of person she was.So when they said that it was OD, I will never believe that was true.”Authorities have not released an official cause of death as they await the results of an autopsy for each woman, but Belize police said they found alcohol and gummies in the friends’ room at the Royal Kahal Beach Resort in San Pedro.

Resort staffers entered the room and found the women unresponsive on Saturday after all three did not respond to employees’ repeated attempts to contact them.The friends, who were on vacation, hadn’t been seen since heading into the room the night prior.

Their bodies showed no signs of external injuries and vomit was found near each of the women, according to Belize Police Commissioner Chester Williams.Another vigil attendee echoed Khalfaoui’s staunch stance that an overdose doesn’t sound right.“They’re respectful, they w...