Chicago Producer Murdered On Vacation In Belize

By Mae Rice in News on Jan 15, 2016 10:27PM

Anne Swaney, a 39-year-old executive producer of online operations at ABC7Chicago.com, was found murdered in Belize on Friday, ABC 7 reports.

Swaney was in Belize’s Cayo District on vacation, and was staying at Nabitunich Farm, near a town called San Jose Succotz.

She was killed when she stayed behind from one of the farm’s group horseback riding trips, Benque Viejo Police Superintendent Daniel Arzu told ABC7. When the trip returned, they “found her personal effects on the deck,” and went in search of her, then called the police.

The police couldn’t find her that night, but found her at 8:15 a.m. on Friday, with “bruises on her neck and lacerations on either side of her head,” Arzu told ABC7. She was taken to San Ignacio Hospital in Belize and was pronounced dead; an autopsy is underway, and local police are investigating.

Coworkers remember Anne as an innovator, according to ABC7:

"She was a trailblazer in the digital news space and was one of our first website employees," said John H. Idler, president and general manager of ABC7. "Anne helped us evolve our business and our newsroom, but most importantly, she was a kind person who was always had a smile and a positive attitude."

Though there is no nationwide tourist advisory for Belize, tourists are told to be careful there, due to a recent uptick in violent crime across the country.