On October 18, gunmen in Honduras shot and killed a transgender activist who had sought asylum in the United States but had been deported back to Honduras in July.
Local media reported that unidentified gunmen riding a motorcycle shot and killed 42-year-old Melissa Nuez in Morocel, 40 miles east of Tegucigalpa.The non-profit organization Reportar Sin Miedo claims that Nuez was shot and killed as she was leaving her home by “hooded individuals.”
According to the Associated Press, police said that Nuez had dropped off friends and was leaving their house talking on a cellphone when she was shot dead.
According to Miguel Carranza, a spokesperson for the police, “a personal issue with her enemies is thought to be the motive behind the crime.”Glenda de Jess Nuez, Nuez’s sister, said that before going to Honduras to visit family, Nuez had lived in the United States for about 25 years.
According to Indyra Mendoza, general coordinator of Cattrachas, a lesbian feminist organization based in Tegucigalpa, Nuez had returned to Honduras in December 2021, but when she tried to return to the United States in July, she was denied entry.After many years in New York, she was at the time residing in Miami.The Washington Blade was informed by Mendoza that Nuez had unsuccessfully sought asylum in the United States for unknown reasons.
Mendoza disclosed to Reporter Sin Miedo that the initial investigation showed that Nuez had been shot twice in the head.
Cattrachas claims that Nuez is the 34th LGBTQ person killed in Honduras this year.Danny Reyes, a member of the LGBTQ advocacy group Rainbow Movement, stated, “They continue to kill us and they continue to violate our rights.”We demand that the Honduran government begin ensuring social justice as soon as possible.
