Mexican Envoy, Maid Shot to Death in Moscow

A Mexican diplomat and his maid were found beaten and shot to death in his Moscow apartment, the Mexican Embassy said today.

The embassy said the body of Manuel Portillo Quevedo and his Mexican maid, Maria del Carmen Cruz, were found the afternoon of Oct. 31 by fellow diplomats. The embassy said Portillo Quevedo’s colleagues grew concerned after he did not show up for work the previous day and did not answer the telephone or his door bell.

The statement said the bodies were found after the door was forced open. Portillo Quevedo, 43, apparently lived alone in the apartment in the compound for foreigners, authorities said.

“Dr. Portillo had received a blow with a blunt instrument and then (was) shot in the head,” the embassy said. “Miss Cruz was severely beaten and shot twice in the head.”