The stowaways found dead in the wheel well of a JetBlue plane in Florida earlier this month have been identified as two teenagers traveling from the Dominican Republic, according to a report Thursday.
Jeik Anilus Lusi and Elvis Borquez Castillo — who were found dead in the plane’s landing gear compartment at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Jan. 7 — were identified by their mothers using photographs and DNA, according to NBC Miami. Castillo was just 16; Lusi’s age wasn’t immediately clear.
Both died from asphyxiation from a lack of oxygen, authorities told the outlet.
The plane had spent the day flying to and from New York City in freezing temperatures before the bodies were found during a routine post-flight inspection, according to JetBlue.
Their mothers, Margarita Luisi Elisma and Ironelis Castillo, first identified them through photographs, and then provided DNA samples to Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies, who traveled to the Dominican Republic for the investigation.
Ironelis Castillo told the station earlier this month that her son was driven to a nearby airport before leaving the Dominican Republic on Jan. 4. That was the last she heard from him.
The plane then made stops in Jamaica, Salt Lake City, New York and eventually in Fort Lauderdale before the gut-wrenching discovery.
Authorities are still investigating how the teens managed to get inside the plane’s cramped space.
