The heartbroken mum of a Scot who died in Colombia told how he’ll be “in her heart” forever.
Austen Smith, 27, was found in mysterious circumstances in an apartment in the South American country at the weekend.
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He was laid to rest in an emotional service days later where his mum Angela paid tribute to her “happy loving and caring” boy.
She said: “Austen used to get so excited at times when he was on the phone trying to tell me what he had been up to or how work had been.
“Until his last day we were together and he will be in my heart forever more.
“So many good memories along with some challenges that we all have in life.
“Every day was precious and I will treasure them all forever. Rest in peace Austen.”
Austen was born in Scotland but moved to Colombia when he was three months old.
He shifted back to Turriff, Aberdeenshire, with his mum for good when he was six.
His mum told his funeral service how he found work on standby boats before he opted to head back to Colombia two years ago.
She said: “He decided he wanted to visit his dad and his Colombian family. Who was I to say no?
“I knew I would miss him so much but I had to let him go.”
Austen survived a motorbike crash as a teen and his mum recalled how he got back on his feet faster than expected.
He planned to switch to driving cars to stay safe but was then involved in a second bike smash after moving back to Colombia.
Tearful Angela said: “Unfortunately, Austen was out on his dad’s motorbike and had another accident.
“This time it was life-threatening. He spent weeks in a coma.
“Again he pulled through and his determination to get better paid off.”
Angela told how she raced over to Colombia to be with her son as he recovered.
She added: “I spent months with Austen here in Colombia until I had to return home.
“We kept up our communications with Whatsapp calls and videos. We were always connected one way or another.”
Austen’s service was held in the VIP room of the Pan American Centre on Tuesday.
Angela was surrounded by friends and family while others dialled in online to watch the service.
At the end Frank Sinatra’s song My Way was performed and balloons were let off in Austen’s memory.
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A local newspaper reported that Austen was found fighting for breath and was dead before emergency crews arrived.
A post-mortem was carried out but his cause of death has not been made public.
