By Dustin Brown
An Astoria man and a Brooklyn woman were found dead early Sunday morning in a private garage in Astoria where they suffocated after leaving their car engine running with the door closed, police said.
Juan Carlos Morena, 28, of 35-52 24th St. in Astoria, was discovered at 3:35 a.m. Sunday with Norley Soto, 22, inside the garage at 36-33 24th St. with his vehicle running, said Detective Nancy Yule, a police spokeswoman.
The day after the accident, a lone rose was left hanging from the knob of the red garage door at the bottom of a three-family home in Astoria.
The medical examiner determined the cause of death to be accidental asphyxiation, Yule said.
“There is no such thing as him being found that way and trying to commit suicide because he wouldn’t do that,” said Olga Duell, a longtime family friend who lives a few flights below Morena’s apartment in the Ravenswood housing project.
Morena lived with his parents Alberto and Amelia in the same apartment the family had occupied for the last 30 years.
Duell said neighbors who had lived for many years in the building were devastated by the loss of someone who had been loved by many.
“Whether it would be me or anyone in the building you would ask, no one would say anything bad about this child. He was the kindest, gentlest most loving—” Duell said before stopping to stifle tears.
Morena’s body was discovered Sunday morning by his father Alberto, who stopped by the garage when his son failed to respond to several calls on his beeper. He visited Duell to inform her shortly after he discovered his son’s body.
Duell did not know what Morena’s relationship was to Soto.
She said Morena and her own son grew up together and that he came from a “wonderful, very educated, hardworking” family.
Morena had worked for a number of years at Home Depot, but Duell did not know where he had been employed most recently.
Morena’s parents immigrated from Colombia. His father recently retired from a position at the New York Telephone Company, where his mother also works.
He is survived by his parents and his brother Alberto, who is in his early 30s.
Reach reporter Dustin Brown by e-mail at Timesledger@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 154.
