Thaindian News

NEW YORK (BNO NEWS) – A Nicaraguan diplomat was found dead on Thursday in his Bronx apartment with his throat slashed, police said.

The consul of Nicaragua in New York, Cesar Mercado, 34, was found by his driver at around 10:30 a.m. local time. He was also a senior official working at the Permanent Mission of Nicaragua to the United Nations. He had been the Nicaraguan consul for eight years.

The driver arrived to give Mercado a lift to the United Nations to attend the annual nations meeting. He waited for him before deciding to go inside for him.

As he approached the apartment, the driver found the door ajar and the body was lying just inside the doorway fully clothed and covered with blood. A steak knife was found on the floor next to the diplomat’s body.

Authorities have not determined a motive or suspect on the case. Neighbors said that overnight loud noises were heard in the sixth floor apartment at about 3:00 a.m. Police investigators said that no signs of robbery were found and all indicated that it was a murder case.

An assistant to Nicaragua’s ambassador to the UN, Maria Rubiales de Chamorro, said the mission had no immediate comment. Officials said that Mercado’s body would be flown to Managua, Nicaragua when available.

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, a fierce critic of the United States and a defender of North Korea and Iran, was expected to speak during the General Assembly.