More insight into the murder of gay 19-year-old Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado, whose killer was arrested yesterday.
Christopher Pagan, whose original iReport was the first I learned of the crime, has been following it. It appears that the killer, 26-year-old Juan Antonio Martínez Matos, originally believed his victim was a female prostitute.
"He said that he did not know that it was really a man and they went to his apartment in Cidra, where Steven allegedly told him to have anal sex with him, which provoked anger in him and caused him to murder him. He also said that Steven tried to stab him, and that he armed himself with a kitchen knife and under a fit of rage he injured him, dismembered him, decapitated him and then later took his remains to Guavate where he was left. Other allegations of the killer is that in 2003 he was arrested for domestic abuse and that in his youth he was molested and that is why he hates homosexuals. The authorities said that this case has been advanced and successful due to the cooperation of the local GLBT community. The agent Angel Rodriguez said that he is being interrogated and will be charged with first degree murder. He also indicated that he will submit another request to the federal judge to have this treated as a hate crime. At the suspect's home the police found 2 knives to commit the murder, and that they were then thrown in a septic tank."
Video of the suspect in custody, AFTER THE JUMP…
There will be a vigil held in New York City in downtown Manhattan – location TBA on Sunday at 8 pm. Here's a page of information on it, and here's a Facebook page.
Previously…
Suspect Arrested in Horrific Murder of Puerto Rican Gay Teen [tr]
Gay Puerto Rican Teen Decapitated, Dismembered, and Burned [tr]
