US State Department employee found dead in Rio

A female employee of the U.S. State Department was found strangled in her hotel room in Rio de Janeiro, near Copacabana, Rivaldo Barbosa, the head of the local police department told reporters on Thursday.

According to investigators, Victoria Tkachuk, 38, was on vacation and was going to visit four cities in Brazil before returning to the United States. The police detained a man, with whom the victim was last seen. It was reported that they met at a fair, and then were seen dining together in a restaurant.

Security cameras recorded the suspect entering the room of the American woman. The man does not plead guilty, though. He says that that he stayed at the hotel for less than an hour, and when he left, the woman was still alive. The investigation is underway.