Murder of Nicaraguan Man Adds to International Tensions

POLICE have one man in custody for the murder of a Nicaraguan man and assaults on two other Nicaraguans after a dispute in a bar in La Guácima, Alajuela, northwest of San José.

Eyewitnesses told the daily La Nación the dispute erupted after a group of Costa Ricans made reference to the recent fatal attack on Nicaraguan man by two Rottweilers (see story above).

The argument escalated as the Costa Ricans began throwing rocks at the Nicaraguans, who then attempted to flee, La Nación reported.

According to officials, a Costa Rican man with the last name Arguedas, 38, now under house arrest, chased after a group of three Nicaraguans and attacked them with a knife. The assault left José Ariel Silva, 23, dead in the street and wounded two others, who are in stable condition, the daily reported.

The recent fatal dog attack, now under investigation by Costa Rican authorities, triggered a wave of tasteless jokes in Costa Rica and caused many Nicaraguans, including government representatives and legislators, to criticize what they saw as Tico insensitivity toward Nicas living in Costa Rica.