Hope Ends in Heartbreak: Soccer Star’s Famil...

Hope Ends in Heartbreak: Soccer Star’s Family Found Dead After Three-Day Search During Venezuela Earthquakes

Lucas Trejo was in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, when back-to-back earthquakes struck on Wednesday, June 24

Lucas Trejo, Yanina Maranella and their kids.Credit : Lucas Trejo/Instagram

Lucas Trejo’s wife, Yanina Maranella, and their two children, Aarón and Ainhoa, were killed in the devastating back-to-back earthquakes in Venezuela.

After two earthquakes, with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5, hit overnight on Wednesday, June 24, Deportivo la Guaira shared that the Argentine soccer player’s family was tragically killed during what the U.S. Geological Survey described as a “severe seismic doublet sequence.”

“From the #DLG we join the grief that overwhelms player Lucas Trejo, for the sensitive passing of his wife, Yanina Maranella, and of his children, Aarón and Ainhoa Trejo,” the team wrote on social media. “Peace to their souls and comfort for Lucas and all his loved ones.”

Lucas Trejo, Yanina Maranella and their kids.Lucas Trejo/Instagram

Having helped in the 72-hour search for Trejo’s family before they were found deceased on Saturday night, fellow soccer player Edson Tortolero shared a statement on social media.

“We inform all the people of Venezuela and Argentina that the bodies of Lucas Trejo’s family members have been found,” he wrote on his Instagram Stories. “We thank everyone for their support and ask for the utmost respect for his family during this time.”

“We pray for eternal life for them,” he continued. “And we also thank the family members, pastors, players and fellow fans who came to offer support.”

According to Sport Bible, he was with his club, Deportivo la Guaira, i the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, for a league match when the quakes struck.

Lucas Trejo.DiaEsportivo/Action Plus/Shutterstock

Since the earthquakes hit, Jorge Rodriguez, the leader of Venezuela’s National Assembly, announced in a press conference that the death toll has risen to 1,430.

In addition to those who were found deceased, more than 2,300 people were injured and more than 3,000 were left homeless.

On Friday, June 26, Hector Bello, a soccer player for Maritimo de la Guaira, announced on Instagram that his wife, Andrea Bello, was one of the people who was killed as she shielded their 1-year-old daughter, Alana, from the earthquakes.

“You’ll always be our favorite hero, Mommy. I’m going to make sure our baby remembers how wonderful you were, how much you loved her,” he wrote alongside several photos of his late wife and their baby. “I’ll tell her the story of how you saved her, how you gave your own life for our daughter, how you were a brave woman who, even with your last breaths, never abandoned her.”