Argentine Footballer Lucas Trejo's Wife and Two Children Found Dead After Venezuela Earthquakes

Argentine footballer Lucas Trejo's wife and two young children have been found dead in Venezuela, more than 74 hours after they went missing following a series of devastating earthquakes that have now killed around 1,500 people.

Trejo's wife, Yanina Maranella, and their children Aaron and Ainhoa were in Playa Grande when the quakes struck and their apartment block collapsed. Their bodies were recovered after a lengthy search that Trejo's father and brother had travelled to Venezuela to help with.

Venezuelan club Sport Maritimo de La Guaira, where Trejo plays, confirmed the deaths in an official statement. "Club Sport Maritimo La Guaira deeply mourns the loss suffered by Lucas Trejo's family," it read. "After a 74-hour search, they were found deceased."

Former Venezuela international Edson Tortolero, a close friend of Trejo, also posted the news on Instagram. "We inform all the people of Venezuela and Argentina that the bodies of Lucas Trejo's family members have been found lifeless," he wrote. "We thank everyone for the support and ask for the most sincere respect for his family at this time."

Trejo has not spoken publicly about the loss. He shared a photo of the four of them on his Instagram Stories with no caption.

Lucas Trejo

The back-to-back earthquakes hit Venezuela on June 24, with the northern coastal region of La Guaira taking the worst of it. At least 69,000 people have been reported missing.

Several other sports figures have also been caught up in the disaster. Eighteen-year-old Venezuelan footballer Yiimvert Berroteran was among those killed, as was Daisy, the wife of former MLB player Gorkys Hernandez. Defender Hector Bello lost his wife Andrea when their building came down. She died shielding their one-year-old daughter with her own body.