American comedian Tou Ger Xiong is kidnapped and murdered by a group of men demanding ransom after going on a date with a woman he met online while on holiday in Colombia

An American comedian was kidnapped and stabbed to death by a gang in Colombia after they kidnapped him and tried to hold him for ransom while he was on a date with a woman he met on social media.

Tou Ger Xiong, 50, a Hmong activist and comedian based in the Twin Cities area, was killed Monday, his family said in a heartbreaking statement. He died in the infamous city of Medellin.

Authorities said a 60-foot fall contributed to Xiong’s death. ‘[It was] Due to blunt force trauma to the head, they threw him over a bridge,” said brother Eh Xiong Fox Minneapolis.

His brother told local media that he last spoke to his brother on Sunday, when the activist asked for $2,000, the same amount police said was the ransom. Uh said the money never arrived. At least one man is in custody in connection with the gruesome murder.

“It is with immense sadness that we share the heartbreaking news of the discovery of the body of our beloved family member. Tou Ger Xiong was a beloved member of our family and the pain of his loss is indescribable,” the family statement said.

Xiong was taken by the gang on Sunday after meeting the woman he was chatting with online, reports said El Colombiano. At one point, the gang grabbed Xiong and demanded his family pay a $2,000 ransom.

On Monday, his body was found outside an apartment building with more than a dozen stab wounds.

He arrived in Colombia and planned to stay there for the entire holiday.

“We are fully cooperating with law enforcement agencies who are working diligently to investigate this heinous crime. “We trust their efforts to bring those responsible to justice, and we implore anyone with information to come forward and assist,” his family also said.

“We have full confidence in the Colombian police that they will find the people who did this to him and bring them to justice,” Eh said.

“Rather than mourn the loss of his life, we want to celebrate what he did and what he could do to move the community forward,” he added.

Eh said the family is working to establish a foundation in Xiong’s name.

In a separate interview with KTSP, Eh said his brother traveled to Colombia regularly. A photo on Facebook appears to show Xiong in the country on October 20.

Three American tourists have been murdered in Colombia in the past month. The number of kidnappings has now doubled across the country. The kidnapping of football star Luis Diaz’s father in November made headlines worldwide.

Xiong was born in Laos. His father worked for the CIA during covert US operations in the country in the early 1970s. In 1975, after the successful communist takeover of the government, the family fled to Thailand, where they were sent to a refugee camp.

From there they went to the US and settled in St. Paul. Xiong was the valedictorian of his graduating class at Humboldt High School. He later graduated from Carleton College with a degree in political science.

During his studies, Xiong started performing and even created a collective Project Respectism, which brought together singers, comedians and storytellers.

On his LinkedIn page, Xiong said he was “celebrating cultural diversity through laughter.”

According to his IMDb page, Xiong appeared in one film, 1997 Portraits on canvas, which was about the story of a Hmong immigrant family’s struggle.

In 2004, a Chicago Tribune profile called him “America’s only Hmong comedian.”

Xiong also dealt with other issues, such as organizing protests in their aftermath Cha Vang, a Hmong hunter, murder by a white man, James Nichols, in 2007. Nichols was later found guilty of second-degree murder.

He did the same in 2021 when a Hmong man was killed by police in California while “defending his ranch” while resisting a forced evacuation during a wildfire.

Later, Xiong would build solidarity between the Twin Cities’ Hmong community and Black Lives Matter.

U.S. Senator Tina Miller has spoken out about Xiong’s killing, saying her office is working with authorities to determine the facts in the case.

“We are fully cooperating with law enforcement agencies who are working diligently to investigate this heinous crime. “We trust their commitment to bringing those responsible to justice, and we implore anyone with information to come forward and help,” the Democrats’ office said.

While the state’s other senator, former presidential candidate Amy Klobuchar, also said her office is cooperating with Colombian authorities and the U.S. Embassy.

‘This is a heartbreaking tragedy. Tou Ger was an incredible person who was constantly working to improve his community. My thoughts and prayers are with his loved ones during this difficult time,” Klobuchar said.

‘This is terrible news. My heart goes out to Tou Ger Xiong’s family and our entire Hmong community. As a comedian and activist, his work has touched many lives in the Twin Cities and beyond,” Rep. Betty McCollum said in a post on X.

Among those who also paid tribute to Xiong was his longtime friend Terri Thao, who shared the story Sahan diary that the comedian was the first Hmong performer they had ever seen.

‘He knew how powerful voice could be. Whatever he did, he didn’t do it just because he wanted the individual glory or honor. He did it out of love for the community,” Thao said.

Xiong was instrumental in organizing the first Hmong Minnesota Day in 2015 at the state fair.