A Tourist Allegedly Set Several Businesses on Fire in Puerto Rico

In the early hours of January 2, a woman from Missouri visiting Puerto Rico allegedly set fire to several businesses in the southwestern town of Cabo Rojo, burning down three of them and partially damaging the other. The incident set off widespread outrage across the island, which is currently facing a gentrification crisis due to expats relocating for tax breaks and the proliferation of short-term rentals for tourism that have displaced local residents.

The Puerto Rico Police Department identified the suspect as Danielle Bertothy, and officials say she left the island that same day. An investigation is ongoing and no arrest has been made. The businesses that fully burned down are the restaurant Marinera, Bar Marea, and Artesanías Juavia. The boutique hotel Luichy’s Seaside Hotel, which had around 50 guests on site at the time of the incident, was also partially damaged. Angel Luis Marrero, who owns Luichy’s and the building that houses all four businesses, told local news station Telemundo that he estimates repairing the damages from the fire will cost around $500,000 and jeopardize the livelihood of 15 employees.

In a Facebook post, Bar Marea said an allegedly intoxicated Bertothy came into the business near closing hours and began insulting patrons as well as workers. Bar Marea called the police and said officers walked Bertothy to a nearby Airbnb where she was staying, but the bar had to call police once again after she returned to the business. Bertothy was not detained either time, Bar Marea said in its post. After the second incident, the bar closed down. Security footage Bar Marea posted from the scene shows a person that appears to be Bertothy near the fire as it began; the person appears again later carrying a red gas can.

“I don’t understand why, if a person is aggressive, alcoholic, and disrespectful, they are [not] prosecuted. I don’t understand why she came to burn down the businesses. I don’t understand why they didn’t heed our call. The thing is that in this country you have to live in fear, letting these types of situations pass as if nothing had happened,” Bar Marea said on Facebook.

The property manager of the Airbnb where Bertothy was staying told the Latino Newsletter that she was due to stay at the short-term rental between December 30 and January 11. The manager, who asked the outlet to keep him anonymous, says Bertothy was provided a gas can and a generator after most of Puerto Rico lost power on New Year’s Eve. The island has been struggling with recurring, widespread blackouts for several years since the local government transferred management of the electric grid to a private company.

According to a now-deleted LinkedIn account, Bertothy works at an advertising and digital-marketing agency in St. Louis called HLK Agency. The agency suspended her after receiving a letter from St. Louis alderwoman Daniela Velázquez. “We were shocked to learn about the events in Puerto Rico. We have not yet been contacted by law enforcement in either Puerto Rico or Missouri but we are ready to cooperate in their investigation if asked,” the company said in a statement. “After learning about this on Friday afternoon, we chose to immediately place the employee on suspension pending further information. We are outraged by this senseless act and hope the authorities can address it in a timely fashion.”

Anyone with information about the incident can contact the Puerto Rico Police Department at 787-343-2020. The businesses will remain closed until further notice, the respective owners told local media outlet Metro. Two GoFundMe campaigns — one for Luichy’s Seaside Hotel and another for both Bar Marea and Artesanías Juavia — have been launched to help owners rebuild.

“We lost the material, but the dreams are still alive,” Bar Marea said on Facebook.