Federal authorities executed a search warrant in St. Louis on Tuesday in connection with the investigation of a tourist accused of arson of a store in Puerto Rico last week.
The St. Louis Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is assisting U.S. territorial authorities with the arson investigation, but no arrests have been made, spokeswoman Lisa Storey told NBC News.
Puerto Rico’s largest newspaper, El Nuevo Día, reported on Tuesday that Puerto Rican authorities are close to indicting a suspect in the incident in which a tourist was caught on surveillance camera arson. Lieutenant Miguel Rivera Sepulveda of the Mayaguez police explosives division told the newspaper that charges could be filed as early as this week or next.
Video and photos of the incident quickly spread on social media, sparking outrage among Puerto Ricans on the island and in the mainland United States.
The incident occurred early Thursday morning in Cabo Rojo, a small coastal town in the southwestern part of the island. Island authorities said the woman, who has not been named by NBC News because she has not been charged or named in the ATF investigation, left Puerto Rico and returned to the mainland.
“I wish we could have arrested her yesterday,” said Cabo Rojo Mayor Jorge Morales Wiskovic. “She needs to be returned immediately and brought to justice in the country. It wasn’t just businesses that were burnt. There were rooms on the second floor where people were sleeping. People were burned to death. It was possible.”
Morales said the suspect was a tourist who came to one of the businesses, a restaurant, and harassed people. Police took her twice to the nearby Airbnb property where she was staying. Later that night, after the store had closed and everyone had gone home, reports of the fire started coming in.
Morales said that thanks to security video from a business, investigators were able to identify the suspect as a tourist who was harassing people late at night. She then got into a white car that picked her up and left, Morales said.
Bar Marea restaurant posted on Facebook on Thursday that the tourist arrived late at night, appeared drunk and “started insulting other customers and even assaulting a woman and one of the servers. ” he said. Val Marea did not respond to requests for comment.
According to the post, the woman returned with gasoline after the store closed, sprinkled it around and set it on fire.
Affected businesses include Luisi’s Seaside Hotel, Marinella Restaurant, Artesanias Juavia and Bar Marea Restaurant, which rent space in the hotel building.
About 50 people who were staying there were evacuated, the restaurant said in a post.
Hotel owner Angel Luis Marrero told El Nuevo Dia in an interview on Sunday that the fire caused an estimated $500,000 in damage and affected the lives of 15 employees.
The suspect’s employer, St. Louis-based HLK Agency, said in a statement on Instagram that the employee was immediately suspended pending further information.
“We were shocked to learn of the events in Puerto Rico. We have not yet been contacted by police in Puerto Rico or Missouri, but we stand ready to cooperate with the investigation if requested,” the statement said. .
A representative for the Cabo Rojo Police Department told NBC News: “We are taking the necessary steps. A thorough investigation is underway. We are unable to provide any further information as it would compromise the investigation. .”
