Gay Group Demands Murder Probe

Gay rights activists in southern Puerto Rico are urging authorities to investigate the double murder of two young men found dressed in womens clothing, each with a gunshot to the head, on the side of a road.

The Canadian Pressreports that a police officer discovered the victims during a pre-dawn patrol in Juana Diaz on Monday. Police arrested an unidentified 28-year-old man and seized his car in connection with the murder.

But gay rights group Puerto Rico for All wants police to further investigate the crime. The group's founder, Pedro Julio Serrano (pictured), told the Canadian Press that authorities are legally bound to determine if the slaying was motivated by the victims' sexual orientation or gender identity.

Serrano said hate crimes against gay and transgender people in Puerto Rico are not all that uncommon. Serrano said nine gay and transgender people have been killed in the last 10 months and that police response has been inadequate.

"What we hear is silence and intolerance," he told the Canadian Press.