Suspects in Hotel Fire Allegedly in Plot With Others

Puerto Rico’s justice secretary said Thursday that two Teamsters Union members arrested in the Dupont Plaza Hotel fire conspired with “others” to set the New Year’s Eve blaze that killed 96 people.

The workers, Hector Escudero Aponte and Armando Jimenez Rivera, were charged Thursday in San Juan District Court with “conspiracy to set a malicious fire.” Both men already are facing 96 counts of murder and federal arson charges.

Asked about the significance of the new conspiracy charge, Justice Secretary Hector Rivera Cruz said Escudero Aponte and Jimenez Rivera are accused of “conspiring with each other and others to set the fire.”

‘Previous Crime’

“We are talking about the stage before carrying out the actual crime. So it is a crime previous to the other crimes,” he said.

The blaze erupted in the hotel’s ballroom where Teamsters members had just taken a vote to strike at midnight. The union leadership has denied any involvement in the fire.

A senior investigator said Thursday that authorities believe at least four people were involved in starting or in covering up the fire.

The FBI contends Escudero Aponte has confessed to starting the fire with a can of Sterno fuel, which evidence indicated was supplied by Jimenez Rivera. The second man then allegedly stood “with others” to shield Escudero Aponte from view as he set the blaze.

The total number of arrests “could reach five or six,” another investigator said.