Gay teen burned and decapitated in Puerto Rico

365 Gay Newswire

Towleroad reported today that a gay Puerto Rican teen was found brutally murdered on the island.

Nineteen-year-old, Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado’s body was found burned, decapitated and dismembered on Nov. 14 in Cayey, a city only a few miles away from his hometown in Caguas.

According to an iReport by Christopher Pagan, “He was a very well known person in the gay community of Puerto Rico, and very loved.”

Pagan said, “Never in the history of Puerto Rico has a murder been classified as a hate crime. Even though we have to follow federal mandates and laws, many of the laws in which are passed in the USA such as Obama’s new bill, do not always directly get practiced in Puerto Rico.”

Pagan also noted the public remarks from a police investigator for the case that ‘people who lead this type of lifestyle need to be aware that this will happen’.

Towleroad translated gay activist Pedro Julio Serrano’s response:

“It is inconceivable that the investigating officer suggests that the victim deserved his fate, like a woman deserves rape for wearing a short skirt. We demand condemnation of this investigator and demand that Superintendent Figueroa Sancha replace him with someone capable of investigating this case without prejudice.”

According to Pagan, the story has only made local headlines and deserves international coverage.