Crime

Wash. Woman Found Dead in Cancún Hotel Room During Thanksgiving Vacation, Boyfriend Charged with Murder

Taylor Allen, 31, is in custody in Mexico on suspicion that he killed his 26-year-old girlfriend, Sativa Transue

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Published on December 2, 2021 02:05 PM

Sativa Transue, Taylor Allen. Photo: Sativa Transue Facebook

A Washington woman is dead and her boyfriend is in custody after a Thanksgiving vacation to Cancún, Mexico, ended in tragedy.

On Saturday, authorities received a call about a domestic violence incident at a Cancún hotel. When officers arrived, they discovered 26-year-old Sativa Transue deceased in her hotel room, according to a news release from Quintana Roo Police.

Police were informed by the hotel's head of security that Transue had requested medical attention the night before, alleging that her boyfriend, Taylor Allen, drunkenly hit her.

Transue's sister, Mykayla Bolieu, echoed the head of security's allegations, writing on a GoFundMe page that on Friday night, Transue texted her friends to say she'd "gotten into an altercation" with Allen and "stitches were needed."

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The following morning, Allen requested help from a paramedic, claiming that Transue was not breathing, according to police.

"[On Friday] she was messaging me, showing me the views, snap chatting my daughter Amelia. She told me she wasn't having the best trip, but she was enjoying the sun," Bolieu wrote on Facebook, noting that the couple had just arrived in Mexico on Thanksgiving Day. "Unfortunately we got the call around 9 a.m. that she had passed away."

Allen, 31, was taken into custody and charged with femicide in Transue's death, PEOPLE confirms. It was not immediately clear if he has entered a plea or retained an attorney.

Local authorities determined probable cause for the arrest based on a medical evaluation of Transue's body, the hotel security manager's statements and the indication that Allen was the only person with Transue at the time of her death, according to police.

Police identified Allen as Transue's husband in their reports, but Bolieu corrected the relationship on Facebook.

"I want to clarify that they were definitely not married. They were just dating," she wrote. "It seems Taylor was telling the hotel desk she was his wife even though she wasn't."

"My sister was the happiest person I knew. She wouldn't want anyone to be sad. She'd want us to celebrate her together," Bolieu wrote in a separate Facebook post. "I also want to say: please if you're in an abusive relationship, tell someone. Speak up. Don't be embarrassed because you have absolutely no reason to be. ... I hope Sativa's story can encourage others to get out while they can."

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.