According to sources close to the initial investigation of the deceased 52 year old man found bound and gaged with duct tape in the bathtub bathroom of his room at a Bay Ridge Best Western hotel yesterday – the office of city medical examiner, and police investigators are apparently poised to declare declared the death of accountant and local restaurateur, Paul Mento, a suicide.
from the Brooklyn Eagle:

It was determined Tuesday that Mento’s death was a suicide. He was found with duct tape over his mouth, which led to initial suspicions, mostly on local blogs, that the death had been a homicide. The Medical Examiners Office determined that it was in fact a suicide, and that Mento died through asphyxiation caused by the duct tape.Contrary to initial published reports that the body was found in the bathtub, it was in fact discovered on the bathroom floor up against the door, which was closed, according to police, which indicates that Mento must have been alone.

Police found no blood, no trauma, no signs of struggle, no drugs and no alcohol. “Not a piece of furniture was touched,” according to a police source.

Brooklyn Eagle’s full article, here

Newsday

[photo courtesy of Gawker]

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