The girlfriend of a missing British travel agent who is believed to have been murdered and left in a burnt-out rental car in Sweden has confirmed he is dead – amid speculation that he and his friend were murdered by gangsters.
Father-of-two Juan Cifuentes, 33, and newly-wed Farooq Abdulrazak, 37, both from North London, went missing on a ‘business trip’ to Denmark and Sweden over the weekend.
Hours before they were due home on Sunday, police found two bodies with gunshot wounds inside the burning wreckage of a Toyota RAV4 matching the car they hired on an industrial estate near Malmo in Sweden.
Mr Cifuentes’ partner, named in press reports as Stephanie, took to social media to confirm that he and his friend Mr Abdulrazak had died. The identities of the bodies have not yet been formally established but police believe they are Juan and Farooq.
Stephanie, who has a son and daughter with Mr Cifuentes, said the pair were ‘on their way to meet Allah’.
Both Brits were captured on CCTV footage at the car hire desk in Copenhagen airport hours before they went missing
Farooq Abdulrazak (left) and Juan Cifuentes (right) are believed to be the two men found
Forensic teams are working to confirm the identities of the Brits found in Sweden
The men are believed to have travelled to Denmark before heading to Sweden for business
A lorry is seen carrying the burnt out car wrapped in a plastic sheet
Police are now said to be investigating whether the attack was a carjacking gone wrong
In social media comments reported by The Times, she wrote: ‘Juan was a phenomenal human being, most humble, most giving, hardworking and most charitable person to exist. The definition of the most amazing father.
‘I couldn’t have asked Allah for a better father for my children. He came to Islam at 20 years old through me… Allah gave him the chance to complete umrah (a pilgrimage to Mecca) with Farooq… and now they’re on their way to meet Allah in their final home.’
Meanwhile, police are continuing to probe whether a third man travelled with the pair whilst avoiding the gaze of security cameras.
The dead Brits were captured on CCTV footage at the car hire desk in Copenhagen airport hours before they went missing – but a third unknown man was later seen with them in the Toyota, according to local media reports.
Investigators are now seeking this third individual believed to have been in contact with the victims before the tragedy, who appears to have skirted the glare of security cameras at the car rental location.
Police are working tirelessly to try to work out how the victims died.
It is believed the two men, London-based travel agents, crossed from nearby Copenhagen into Denmark in a rented Toyota, last seen travelling past the Öresund Bridge toll station on Sunday afternoon.
But Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet reports that Swedish police have been investigating a friend of Abdulrazak, described as a 35-year-old non-Brit living in the UK, and a ‘suspected death threat’ linked to the alleged killings of the pair.
It comes as Sweden’s issues with gang violence have bled into other parts of the world, including Britain.
Five years ago, drug boss Flamur Beqiri was shot eight times in front of his wife and their son in Battersea, south London.
Beqiri, a leading figure in a Malmo drug gang originally from Albania, had fled to the capital to avoid a warring faction.
Killer , who had disguised himself as a street cleaner, was jailed for life for Beqiri’s murder two years ago, while three others were jailed for manslaughter and perverting the course of justice.
Detectives have sought to play down fears Cifuentes and Abdulrazak’s killings indicate an escalation of gang violence in Sweden.
Gang violence in Sweden spread to Britain five years ago as killer Anis Hemissi (pictured) gunned down an Albanian-born Swedish crime boss outside his home in London
Flamur Beqiri was shot eight times in front of his wife and child. He had fled to Britain amid a gang war in Sweden
Anis Hemissi was found guilty of murder and firearm possession in February 2022 after shooting Flamur Beqiri to death in London
A friend of the pair said they had travelled to Copenhagen from Heathrow on Saturday, hired a car and were planning on driving across the border to Sweden to meet with hoteliers.
He told MailOnline: ‘From what I’ve heard from the families, Swedish Police are looking into whether there was an incident just as they crossed the border from Denmark.
‘There seems to have been an attack on the car, a carjacking gone wrong and potential robbery.’
The bodies of two men were discovered by firefighters attending the scene of a burning Toyota RAV4 matching the description on a dirt track in an industrial estate in Malmo later that day.
Authorities said they believed the victims had been shot before the car was set alight.
‘Somehow the car has ended up on a deserted piece of land on the outskirts of Malmo,’ the pair’s friend told MailOnline.
‘We haven’t been told how yet, it may have been driven there by one of the thieves.
‘To hide their tracks, the criminals have then torched the car and fled.
‘Two bodies were found inside that vehicle and it’s feared they are Juan and Farooq. Although we don’t know where in the car exactly they were found.’
The friend said Swedish police and Interpol are now looking into whether any possessions were stolen.
It was previously reported that police were working with Interpol, though they declined to say in what capacity at first.
‘As far as we know Juan and Farooq were due to meet with hoteliers and tourism officials in Sweden to discuss possible business ventures with their travel website.’
Local media has also picked up on a third person said to be visible in surveillance photos from before their disappearance.
Sydsvenskan reported that there may have been another person in the car with them when they arrived in Sweden.
Welwyn Garden City FC, the non-league football club that Cifuentes once played for, gave a touching tribute today, believing the dad-of-two had been killed.
A club spokesperson said on X: ‘Everyone at the club is saddened and shocked… Juan was part of our double-winning squad in 2014-15. A very good player and great person.
‘We send our condolences to all his family, friends and ex-teammates.’
Juan (L) and Farooq (C) travelled to Denmark together before heading on to Sweden
Firefighters arrived at the scene of the inferno in Malmo to find bodies already shot
Authorities are reportedly working with Interpol on their probe into the horror
Juan and Farooq’s identities were revealed when a relative of Juan confirmed they had rented a car matching the description in Denmark with plans to head east on a business trip.
Both lived in Finchley, North London and attended Finchley Mosque.
Juan had two daughters, aged three and eight, and Farooq only got married three months ago.
The friend added: ‘The community who meet at the mosque are very tight-knit and we are all shocked and saddened by this.
‘Juan and Farooq were highly-respected, loving people who would help anyone who needed it.
‘I’m numb with grief at the moment, I don’t know really what else to say. Their loss is felt deeply.’
‘The Swedish police have been in contact with us and are providing updates on the situation,’ a relative to Juan told MailOnline.
‘They believe the two men in the car are possibly Juan and Farooq but the bodies are yet to be identified.
‘I have read reports that the two men found in the car had been shot.
‘That is not something that we are aware of at this time. The police have not told us that.
‘All we know at the moment is that Juan and Farooq travelled to Denmark and then on to Sweden for a business trip.
‘They’d been due to return on Sunday before the Euro final but they didn’t come home and nobody has seen them for a few days.’
Earlier Rickard Lundqvist, press spokesperson for police region South, confirmed that there was an investigation to identify the bodies found in the car – but said there was no suspect at present.
Police only identified that the victims were not Danish at first ‘since it was a Danish-registered car’.
Swedish tabloid Aftonbladet later reported that the victims were British, and Swedish police confirmed they are working with foreign police on the case.
Two Brits were shot dead in a rented car and set on fire in Sweden after hiring the vehicle in Denmark. Images show forensics officers investigating the scene
The police are understood to be working with Interpol in their investigations
Farooq (pictured) and Juan were meant to come home on Sunday before the Euros final
Farooq (pictured) and his friend have not been seen since driving away in a rental
The Foreign Office said previously it was supporting the families of two British men reported in Sweden after the bodies were found in a burned-out Toyota in an industrial estate in Malmo on Sunday.
The driver and passenger, who are believed to be British citizens, were found in the gutted remains of a car that had been rented in Denmark and driven across the border to Sweden.
Firefighters discovered the body when responding to the scene of a blaze on the Fosie industrial estate.
Police said they had not yet identified the bodies, but that forensic testing would take place this morning.
Horrifically, the victims are understood to have been shot before the car was set alight, local media reports.
Police are treating the incident as a double murder.
