Arrest made in Rose Hill murder

John Mercado

Fairfax County Police have charged a Springfield man with second-degree murder in connection with the March 25 stabbing death of William G. Martines-Palma in the Rose Hill area, the department announced in a news release today.

John Mercado, 19, was arrested April 18 at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center, where he was already being held without bond in connection with a separate stabbing in the Rose Hill area.

Mercado is accused of stabbing Martines-Palma, 29, on a popular path behind the Rose Hill Apartments on Celtic Drive, where Martines-Palma lived, according to police.

Mercado was initially arrested March 28 and charged with malicious wounding in connection with a stabbing that happened two days after Martines-Palma was killed. In the second incident, Mercado allegedly stabbed a man during a daytime brawl in the 4500 block of Apple Tree Drive. The victim suffered non-life threatening injuries, according to police.

Police had earlier told Inside the Corridor that there was no known connection between the two incidents, and in today’s news release said investigators are “attempting to determine exactly how they are related.”