A Colombian bodybuilder known as “She Hulk” was beaten to death with a hammer while vacationing in Spain — and her husband was found dead with “self-inflicted stab wounds,” according to police and local reports.
Zunilda Hoyos Mendez, 43, and her beefy husband of four years Jarrod Gelling, 46, were found dead in their rental home in Malaga, where they had been staying for about a month following Gelling’s knee surgery.
Mendez, who went by Amy, had told relatives that Gelling was being aggressive toward her over the past year and the two intended on divorcing following their trip, which would have ended with a bodybuilding competition in Portugal in a couple of weeks, family members said.
“She was being abused and wanted a divorce,” the victim’s family told Spanish newspaper Sur.
Mendez died as a result of repeated blows with a hammer while Gelling’s body was found in the bathroom with what police have described as “apparent self-inflicted stab wounds,” according to The Sun, citing local Spanish outlets.
Their bloodied bodies were found in the residence around 2 p.m. Thursday.
“Her body showed obvious signs of violence and that of the man’s signs indicating a suicide-type death which is something an autopsy will have to confirm,” Spanish National Police said.
Mendez’s family hadn’t heard from her since Saturday, after she and Gelling — who is reportedly Colombian and American — had traveled to southern Spain from Dubai, where they had spent most of the past year.
Mendez’s niece Yuleydis told Sur her aunt was going to help Gelling following a knee operation before traveling to Portugal to compete and then going back to Colombia to finalize their divorce.
“For my aunt, it was her last trip with him — a farewell. She had taken the decision to divorce him, because of his aggressive behavior,” said Yuleydis.
“They had broken up already once and were apart for quite a while but then got back together again to try to resolve things, although the mistreatment continued,” she added.
In addition to bodybuilding, Mendez boasted more than 100,000 followers on OnlyFans, according to local reports.
Her coach, Brandon Rey, said in a heartbreaking Instagram post that in just 17 days, they “were going to hit the stage and shock the world.”
“I told you that you could possibly be in the top 10 in the world by the end of this year and I meant it,” Rey wrote. “Rest in paradise Amy.”
“We were so close to the end, but the closest person to you ended it too soon,” Rey said in another post. “Domestic violence should never be taken lightly because it can leave many with a heavy heart.”
Police are still investigating the killing.
