-Published: Wednesday, October 23, 2019-


By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
 

Agents of the Judicial Investigation Organization reported  Tuesday the opening of the investigation into the death of a 55-year-old U.S. citizen surnamed Neu, who was a resident and lived in Jacó Beach, in the Province of Puntarenas.

According to the agents' report, Neu's body was found in his house in a condominium tower in Jacó Beach, after a building worker called the police.

"The building worker arrived at Neu's house at noon. After knocking on the door several times and getting no response, the worker called the police," said the agents in its statement.

According to the agents, with the help of the police, the front door of Neu's house was opened, where he was found lifeless in the living room.

"The body had marks of slight knife wounds on hands and feet," said the agents in its statement.

However, according to the agents, the wounds on Neu's body were not so severe that they could presume to be the cause of death.

Following the process in these cases, the agents coordinated the lifting of the body with forensic doctors. The body was taken to Forensic Medicine of the Judicial Investigation Organization, located in Heredia.

Agents will continue the investigation process to find the causes of Neu's death and, if it is a case of murder capture the criminals.

Regarding another case of a U.S. citizen murder, as A.M. Costa Rica reported Monday, the Prosecutor's Office in Grecia in the province of Alajuela, confirmed that a criminal court judge ordered 30 years in prison for a man surnamed Montoya-Acosta and same sentence to a woman named Jiménez-Esquivel. Both were found guilty of the murder of U.S. citizen William Nearhoff, 70.

During the trial, the Prosecutor's Office presented the facts that happened in July 2018, as follow:

Nearhoff was at home with the Jiménez-Esquivel woman, when Montoya-Acosta arrived. The motive for the crime was described as theft.

"In order to commit the robbery, the killers beat Nearhoff to end his life, then fled the place," said the prosecutor in its statement.

In July 2018, police reported that Nearhoff was found bound and dead of stab wounds in his home.

Police reported the man was gagged and that his hands and feet were tied.

The body was found due to a strong odor detected by several lawyers whose firm is in the same building, according to the Red Cross members who arrived first at the site.

Police officers and detectives of the Judicial Investigation Organization were called then.

According to authorities, Nearhoff, from Dallas, Texas, had been living in the country for the past four years at a building west of the Grecia square.

The two convicted individuals will continue in jail as a post-trial measure, ordered by the judge, until the sentence is confirmed.

 

 



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