Three Men Arrested Over ‘Bestial’ Backpacker Killings in Morocco: Reports

Reports suggest suspects may have pledged allegiance to ISIS

Two female backpackers from Norway and Denmark were killed in Morocco this week, and some officials suspect the killings are connected to the ISIS terrorist group.

The Danish Louisa Jespersen, 24, and Norwegian Maren Ueland, 28, were found dead near the village of Imlil in Morocco’s High Atlas Mountains.

Three more people have been arrested in the “bestial” killings, the BBC reported, adding knife wounds were the cause of death for both. At least one of the suspects was linked to ISIS.

Denmark’s PET intelligence agency stated it is investigating a video that was shared on social media, appearing to show one of the women being killed. A person is heard saying “this is in revenge for our brothers in Hajin,” referring to Hajin, an ISIS stronghold in Syria that was seized by American-backed forces this week.

“We cannot say anything at this point about the video’s authenticity,” PET said of the video.

Moroccan authorities previously said a suspect arrested in tourist hub Marrakech on Dec. 18, was a member of a militant group, without naming the organization, reported Reuters. The Moroccan Bureau for Judicial Investigations said three more were arrested, saying a terrorist motive is likely in the slayings.

“The video and preliminary investigation according to the Moroccan authorities indicate that the killings may be related to the terrorist organization [ISIS],” the Danish intelligence service said in a statement to the news agency. “This is a case of an unusually bestial killing of two totally innocent young women,” it added.

Men in the video allegedly are heard shouting, “It’s Allah’s will” and some allegedly said “this is for Syria,” reported to the Daily Mail. Other video footage shows the suspects allegedly pledging their allegiance to ISIS and its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. They are apparently seen sitting in front of a black and white flag, while one of the men holds a knife and says they condemn “destruction caused by the warplanes of the Crusader alliance,” referring to Western powers.

“We pledge allegiance to the Prince of Faithfuls, Ibrahim Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the Calif of Muslims, al-Husseini, al-Qoraychi, we will be loyal and obedient to him in the Mashreq and Maghreb, in wealth and riches and poor times,” one of the men also apparently says, according to the Mail.

Other reports, including Sky News, said one of the tourists was decapitated.

A man, who asked to not to be named, said the two were tourists and were “allegedly found decapitated,” Sky News reported. The man said the women were traveling without a guide and had been camping “somewhere near the Club Alpin Francais refuge at the base of Mount Toubkal.”

Helle Jespersen, the mother of one of the backpackers, said she urged her daughter not to go to Morocco. “We advised her to go down because it’s such a chaotic place, and you’ve heard of people who have been killed down there,” she told BT, a Danish paper.

Her mother said her daughter’s “throat had been cut,” citing information from Danish police. “I broke down,” the mother said. “She was always happy and positive. All people could with her and she brought out the best in everyone.”

“The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs have been informed that a Norwegian and a Danish citizen have been found dead in the Atlas Mountains south of Marrakech,” Guri Solnerh, communications adviser at the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs told ABC News. “The deaths and victims’ identities have now been confirmed by local authorities.”

The officials added: “We are in contact with relatives and are providing consular assistance in accordance with established practices and framework for assistance in connection with deaths of Norwegian citizens abroad. Our embassy is in contact with local authorities and representatives from the embassy are present in Marrakech.”

Reuters contributed to this report.