Gay Teen, Lopez Mercado was murdered, decapitated, and burned
Juan A. Martinez Matos was arrested on Monday.
The crime? Decapitation, dismemberment, and burning of the body of teen, Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado.
On Telemundo-Puerto Rico news, Matos said Mercado tried to kill him. A self defense claim may have gone better for him prior to cutting up and burning the body.
The world will now focus on this crime which will be largely labeled as a “hate” crime, which it very well may have been. Perhaps it was the angered reaction of a man discovering the woman he “picked up” wasn’t a woman after all – in a country where murder is not an uncommon response. We’ll find out during the testimony.
However, one thing is clear. The world’s attention is now on Puerto Rico. In fact, there has been a big jump in the hits to my Puerto Rico murder rate article.
Now this may be a little too controversial for your taste – but some of you may allow yourself to ponder the question. Do any of us wish the death had been another gang member or drug dealer instead of this teen?
After all, I’m sure that Puerto Rico’s gay culture is actually one of the few surviving tourism draws for the country, while the murder rate no doubt is making tourists think twice before picking another Carribean island destination.
We like to keep emphasizing that it’s just the gang members killing each other (and that should be ok), but the reality is that occasionally tourists like the one shot in Isla Verde outside “the Vibe”, or Sara Kuszak, or the Pink Skirt Murder, or gay teen citizen Lopez Mercado have also become symbols of the violent culture of death that awaits those in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The world is paying attention and they are concerned. When will you be concerned Puerto Rico?
Congratulations Puerto Rico. You made CNN’s homepage. But they’re featuring “murder”, not your beaches (even the beaches closed due to fecal coliform).
The Insider
CNN features murder of Lopez Mercado as top story on cnn.com. The world is watching.
A tribute video has been published to youTube:
