Nicaraguan diplomatic official found dead in New York

[Judi Lynn]

Nicaraguan diplomatic official found dead in New York
COLLEEN LONG
New York— The Associated Press
Published Thursday, Sep. 23, 2010 2:22PM EDT

A Nicaraguan diplomat whose throat had been slashed was found dead Thursday by his driver, who was picking him up for the United Nations General Assembly's annual meeting.

Cesar Mercado, 34, was found at 10:35 a.m. local time in his apartment in the Bronx. The driver found the door ajar and Mr. Mercado's body lying just inside the blood-spattered apartment, police said.

“The knife was found on the floor next to him,” said Paul Browne, the NYPD's deputy commissioner for public information.

Police were investigating a possible motive, and no suspects were immediately identified.

Mr. Mercado came to the U.S. in 2001 to work as an assistant in the office of Nicaragua's ambassador to the United Nations, a friend said. He was single and his family was in Nicaragua.

He eventually became consul general, working with passports and immigration visas. The assistant to the ambassador said the mission couldn't immediately release any information.

Mr. Mercado's friend Amparo Amador said he was like a son to her. Recently, she'd urged him to go to the doctor because he looked thin, and he had been diagnosed with diabetes.

The two went to the wedding of another friend in Brooklyn just six days ago, where he danced and had fun.

“He had no enemies. He was loved by everyone who knew him,” she said in Spanish. “When I first heard of his death, I thought he must've died from natural causes because there would be no way he could be killed.”

She said he lived the life of a young, single guy, but he wasn't wild.

“He was the perfect guy. The best person, just wonderful,” she said. “I feel as if one of my children has died.”

More:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/americas/nicaraguan-diplomatic-official-found-dead-in-new-york/article1721502/