>>>
of thousands of college students will be taking off for
spring break
in the coming weeks. one of the most popular destinations the
mexico
, but with drug violence on the rise the
state department
has issued a travel warning.
janet shamlian
is in
cancun
this morning. good morning to you.
>> reporter:
matt, good morning to you. the beaches are beautiful here. it feels carefree but the fact is we are not far from the ongoing violence of the
mexican drug war
. starting this week and for about the next six weeks or so
american college
students will be streaming here for
spring break
. this morning one young man's story exposes the potential
dark side
of a usually laid back week i'm sexy and i know it
>> reporter:
with sun kissed beaches, oversized drinks and bikinis
cancun
is the
gold standard
for
american college
student this is time of year. tens of thousands will party here over the next six weeks. two years ago
zeke
was among them, joining friends for a final fling before starting
law school
. you had no concerns whatsoever that it wasn't safe.
>>
not at all. everyone does it. how can it hurt someone?
>> reporter:
yet what happened hours after
zeke
arrived would do just that. after a night at the clubs,
zeke
fell asleep on a lounger near the hotel pool. he remembers nothing of what happened next but his parents can't forget the
phone call
.
zeke
was found near the pool, a doctor told them, bloody, unconscious with multiple skull fractures. he was on a ventilator and
near death
.
>>
you can't believe it. everything becomes surreal from that point on. you're living in a nightmare.
>> reporter:
for weeks
zeke
was in a coma. for months he couldn't walk or talk.
law school
was put on hold for relearning the basics.
>>
i was certainly brain damaged. it was like i was sort of a small child.
>> reporter:
to this day
zeke
's case is unsolved. no suspects, no idea what happened.
cancun
police tell nbc news the hotel never reported the crime. there are surveillance cameras where
zeke
was beaten. the hotel told his parents there was no video of the attack.
>>
the camera wasn't functioning.
>> reporter:
do you believe that?
>>
no. do you?
>> reporter:
zeke
's mom believed the hotel feared losing business. the barcelo told nbc news it had no comment on the case. the area has not been immune to drug violence consuming
mexico
, but the director of the
cancun
tourist police says the zone is heavily patrolled and safe. as for
zeke
, the left side of his face is paralyzed, no hearing in his left ear but he's now in
law school
.
>>
to an american it's sort of surreal that something could happen like it did to me and basically no one cares. the hotel doesn't care. the police don't care and there was no real justice.
>> reporter:
a young man's cautionary tale as dawn breaks on another spring vacation season
south of the border
. mexican authorities say cases like
zeke
's are unusual in
cancun
and the tourist heavy beaches are exempt from the travel warning. but 14
mexican states
are included. among them, the big travel destination of puerta vallarta where just last week 22 american
cruise ship
passengers were robbed at gun point. back to you.
>>
janet shamlian
in
mexico
this
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