"Our goal this trip," wrote Leah Koehn, 24, in her travel blog, "was to get by on 30 bucks a day." Leah and her fiancee Britt Leis, 35, wanted to share a trip that neither would ever forget, so earlier this month they sold most of their earthly belongings and flew off to the West coast of South America to travel across and immerse themselves in the Ecuadorian culture. Last Thursday they were walking along one of the beautiful, and mostly remote beaches in northern Ecuador, this in the area known as Esmeraldas along where the equator bisects that part of the country. It was along this lonely beach front, according to family members and the US State Department, that the two Americans from Bend, Oregon, were brutally attacked by two or more men and left for dead.

Leis was beaten and repeatedly stabbed; by some estimates up to 24 times. One report indicated the assailants started stabbing him around his head and throat and then methodically worked their way down his body. Britt Leis' father, Ron, is quoted as saying, "They (the assailants) didn't even want to steal anything, just wanted to kill them, that's all." The attackers also beat and assaulted Koehn and then left as quickly as they had attacked, leaving the couple to die on the beach.

Koehn spoke fluent Spanish and though injured, was able to run for help. Both victims were initially taken to a local hospital where Leis underwent multiple surgeries that removed parts of his pancreas and repaired his spleen and damaged arteries. Doctors cautioned Koehn that Leis' injuries, and the infections caused by the repeated stab wounds and the suspected pathogens on the knife, were so severe that he might not survive. The engaged couple quickly sought assistance from their families. Leis' parents flew to his Ecuador bedside, and the injured Koehn and the comatose Leis were medivaced from their hospital room in Quito to one 4,000 miles away in California, where it is still touch and go for Britt Leis in the ICU. While recovering from her own physical and psychological injuries, Leah Koehn can only hope and pray for Britt's recovery.

The U.S. State Department advised that at least 10 US citizens have been kidnapped and one murdered near the border Ecuador shares to its north with Colombia, a country that has been referred to as the kidnap capital of the world. As an FBI Agent I have been on the Amazon River along the Ecuador/Colombian border seeking to rescue an American kidnapped by Colombian guerillas in that remote area. I know how dangerous travel in that area can be.

A recent travelers survey indicated that over 22% of Americans traveling internationally reported they have been the victim of some type of crime during their travels. Most tourists, however, are relatively safe, by international standards, if, when traveling, they practice extra caution as a way to reduce their chances of becoming either a targeted victim or an unsuspecting victim of opportunity by local criminals, thugs, or terrorists. While similar crimes have been committed in the U.S. on both citizens and tourists, the U.S. State Department web site indicates our Embassy in Quito advises caution when traveling to the northern border region of Ecuador, to include Esmeraldas, where this recent attack took place. Crime is a serious problem throughout this country, especially to travelers from outside of the local area. Incidents of assault, robbery and rape are not uncommon, and tourists are often the target of such attacks.

Some things to remember when you take the vacation of a lifetime, to include travel in third world countries, include the following cautions:

Dress down and try to look something like the locals. Do not wear expensive-looking jewelry or watches and keep your possessions simple without the use of high value cameras. Travel light so you can keep a hand free and you will be less likely to set your luggage down, perhaps leaving it a tempting target for a thief.

Pickpockets are always active as are snatch and grab thieves who go after your purse, computer bag or backpack. If you rent a car, leave nothing in plain sight that could attract a thief, even sunglasses or gym bags. Keep your doors locked, your windows up, and try to travel only in daylight in well traveled areas.

Carry a cell phone with an international capability and only use legitimate taxis as a means of travel. Try never to travel alone and although there may be safety in numbers, groups of obvious tourists have been targeted by thieves.

While soaking up the local culture can, according to some, best be absorbed in local bars; tourists can also be targeted in such places. If you drink too much, or flash cash in the bar, you can be targeted for assault and robbery when you leave the bar. Scopolamine, as opposed to GHB or Rohypnol, is the date rape drug of choice in this part of South America and just like on a college campus, you should never allow a stranger to buy you a drink, or drink from a large open container or punch bowl, or leave your drink unattended as to do so renders you a target for assault, robbery, and even murder.

While international authorities sometimes look the other way when a U.S. citizen is a victim of a crime, they are quick to detect and arrest internationals for suspected drug trafficking. If you carry your own medicine, do so in labeled containers and carry a copy of your prescription with you. Do not volunteer to transport drugs for someone else and don't carry packages or suitcases given to you by another for transportation. More than one-third of U.S. citizens incarcerated abroad are held on drug charges. Ignorance is never an excuse in such situations and foreign prisons are definitely not on your list of sites to see, especially from the inside.

Make sure your medical insurance will cover you in the countries that you plan to travel to and consider purchasing medical evacuation insurance. The couple from Bend, Oregon now has a bill for over $55,000 for their medical flight home and that's just the beginning of their medically related expenses. (Should you want to help them with their overwhelming expenses, you can donate at (The Britt Leis Medical Assistance Fund at Bank of America.) Many more travel safety tips can be found on our website at www.LiveSecure.org, under the Travel Safety section.
While international travel can be wonderful and exciting, you must always be aware of your surroundings and not intentionally place yourself in harm's way. The days are long gone where a U.S. Passport was all the protection you needed to travel around the world. I have encountered people abroad who, when asked about their employment, proudly identify themselves as thieves and kidnappers.

There is still no official word from Ecuadorian authorities concerning their investigation into this matter, but past history would suggest that a solution to this crime would be a miracle. The investigation will be compromised by the lack of creditable law enforcement in the area and the likely lack of witnesses and other evidence that would help solve such a crime in America.

While such atrocities should not deter us from seeing the world, this is but one more wakeup call concerning the potential dangers associated with international travel, like the one so painfully received by the parents of Natalee Holloway when she disappeared from Aruba 41 months ago, never to be seen or heard from again. While Britt and Leah fight for their very survival, they are left with the collective memories of a trip they would rather forget; but something, forget that is, they will never be able to do.