"I want to thank all of you for your love, support and prayers during this time of grief." The former Miss USA Ali Landry began, alongside a WhoSay photo of her late father-in-law, Juan Manuel Gómez Fernández, and brother-in-law, Juan Manuel Gómez Monteverde.
Ali Landry,and her husband, Alejandro Gómez Monteverde, are in mourning after finding out the fate of their missing Mexican relatives.
It was unfortunate, that Alejandro’s father and brother, Juan Manuel Gómez Fernéndez and Juan Manuel Gómez Monteverde, were found dead in a city just over four hours from their home in Tamaulipas, Mexico.
A Mexican state prosecutor confirmed that both men had been dead for several days before they were finally discovered.
The local attorney general finally released a report stating that both dad and son suffered brain trauma.
The Latin Times reported that Fernández and Monteverde were kidnapped on September 4 after leaving their home in Tampico, Tamaulipas, a perilous area known for gang activity.
A report of their disappearance had previously been filed with Mexico's federal special prosecutor for organized crime investigations, SEIDO, in Mexico City.
On October 16, the 42-year-old Landry stated, "Yes, the events surrounding my family were tragic and what has happened will profoundly affect our lives forever."
"But my Father in Law was the kind of man that radiated pure joy and it was infectious. He loved and adored his family more than anything. He was a jokester, a great dancer, a crier (especially when he was talking about his sons), and he lived his life in the present, appreciating each moment as a huge blessing. He was my husbands hero and like my second Dad."
Landry also admired her husband's brother. "My brother in law was such a hard working business owner. He was an incredible salsa dancer, he was fluent in Japanese and we all looked up to him," she explained. "When things became dangerous in Tampico a few years ago he moved his family to Estonia, Guadalajara, and then Mcallen Texas just to keep them safe. He was a wonderful friend, an amazing husband, and a great father to his two beautiful children."
Landry, who was crowned Miss USA in 1996, rose to fame as the Doritos Girl from her 1998 Super Bowl ad. She was married briefly to Mario Lopez which she annulled after two weeks in 2004. Landry married Monteverde in 2006.
They have three children: Estela Inez, 8-year-old, Marcelo Alejandro, 3-year-old, and Valentin Francesco, 2-year-old.
