Two British men feared to be victims of a double murder in Sweden were “role models” in their community, according to a friend.
Juan Cifuentes, 33, and Farooq Abdulrazak, 37, travelled to Denmark and Sweden for a business trip, but were reported missing after failing to return home to north London.
Two bodies were found in a burnt-out car in the Swedish city of Malmo on Sunday afternoon, with fears they may be the British pair.
“They were both very well known, really helpful raising money for charity and different causes,” a friend told Sky News.
The burnt-out car. Pic: TV4
Mr Abdulrazak had got married in the past few months, while Mr Cifuentes had a wife and two children, aged eight and three, according to the friend.
The pair were business partners in what the friend described as “their dream job”, reported to be travel company Empire Holidays.
“On Tuesday morning I heard on the radio that two Brits were found in a burnt-out car and that police were investigating it,” the friend said.
“I didn’t think anything of it but then to learn that they were my friends is something else.”
“Just coming to terms with how they passed away is, I think, the hardest part,” he added.
“Their families are facing the greatest grief you can imagine. Everyone is waiting for the police investigation to complete, to find out what happened.”
The pair worked their ‘dream job’
He added: “There’s no way Farooq or Juan knew the people that did this to them.”
Police are yet to formally identify them but reports claim they are British and may have been shot before the fire started.
Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet reported the Toyota Rav 4 found burnt out had been rented from Copenhagen airport after two Britons flew from Heathrow.
Another Swedish paper, Sydsvenskan, reported CCTV suggested three people were inside when it drove over the Oresund Bridge to Sweden.
Emergency services responded to reports of a fire. Pic: TV4
The shell of the car being removed from the scene. Pic: TV4
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Football club pays tribute
A spokesman for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said the department is “supporting the families of two British men reported missing in Sweden”.
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Empire Holidays on Thursday posted on Facebook about their deaths.
“It is very difficult to say this, but it is with a heavy heart that we inform you that the owner of Empire Holidays (Farooq) has sadly passed away,” it stated.