Inacif reports Albert de Jesús Aracena Núñez died of mechanical asphyxia

Preliminary forensic reports from the National Institute of Forensic Sciences (Inacif) indicate that Albert de Jesús Aracena Núñez, 33, died of mechanical asphyxia. The institute has classified the death as a “violent death, of medico-legal homicide etiology.”

Aracena Núñez had been missing for 21 days before his body was discovered in a state of decomposition in Moca, Espaillat province. The body was found buried in a hole, wrapped in a tarp and covered with lime.

Authorities have detained Iván Arias Espinosa, owner of the New York Grill, in connection with the concealment of the corpse. While business owners claimed Aracena Núñez drowned in a pool, prosecutors are investigating the circumstances of his death. A hearing to determine coercion measures against Arias is scheduled for Friday.