NYC Gay Bar Deaths Were Homicides, Medical Examiner Rules

Two gay men who ended up dead with their bank accounts drained after leaving New York City bars last year were both homicide victims, authorities said Friday. The men died in separate incidents.

In November, the New York police said that detectives were investigating a string of robberies and assaults connected to night spots in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood.

Investigators wanted to know more about the deaths of Julio Ramirez and John Umberger and if they were among “several incidents where individuals have been victims of either robberies or assault,” police said at the time.

The deaths of both men have been ruled homicides caused by a “drug-facilitated theft,” the Office of Chief Medical Examiner said Friday.

Read more at NBCNews.com.