The investigation could lead to a manslaughter case, prosecutor Kenneth Alvarez said, according to ESPN
Natasha Dye
3 min read
New York Yankees/ X
Miller Gardner and Brett Gardner
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- Agents from Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigation Department raided the hotel where Brett Gardner’s son died on Sept. 11, according to ESPN
- Officials reportedly collected physical and digital evidence from the offices of staff and conducted interviews with several employees
- Prosecutor Kenneth Alvarez told ESPN the investigation could lead to a manslaughter case
The Costa Rica hotel where Brett Gardner’s 14-year-old son Miller died in March was raided by authorities, according to ESPN.
Prosecutor Kenneth Alvarez told the outlet that authorities spent three hours at the Arenas Del Mar Beachfront & Rainforest Resort on Thursday, Sept. 11. Agents from Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigation Department reportedly arrived in three pickup trucks to search the property.
Alvarez, in his first media interview regarding Gardner’s death, told ESPN that officials were gathering additional evidence in the teen boy’s death, which an autopsy revealed to be due to carbon monoxide poisoning.
The investigation could lead to a manslaughter case, Alvarez suggested to the outlet.
When reached by PEOPLE, the hotel declined to comment about the raid.
New York Yankees/X; Rich Schultz/Getty
Miller Gardner; Brett Gardner
Thursday’s raid was the second formal search authorities have done on the property, per ESPN, with the first being done one week after Miller died. “Let us remember that what was done at that time was the measurement of toxic substances at the site,” Alvarez said to the outlet. “Based on those tests, a second proceeding was scheduled, which was carried out today to collect evidence.”
Agents reportedly collected physical and digital evidence from the offices of hotel management, maintenance and accounting, and several staff members were interviewed. No arrests or charges have been made and Alvarez told ESPN that staff members “have always shown themselves to be collaborative.”
The Gardner family reportedly hired lawyers in Costa Rica, who have been in “constant contact” with Public Ministry officials, Alvarez told the outlet. “They knew about the operation, and we have remained in communication,” he said.
In June, ESPN reported that Miller’s death was still under investigation.
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Brett Gardner, his wife Jessica and sons Miller and Hunter
The 14-year-old — who died while his family was on vacation in Costa Rica — had high levels of carboxyhemoglobin, which is “a stable complex of carbon monoxide that forms in red blood cells when carbon monoxide is inhaled,” according to Medscape, in his system.
Gardner, the 41-year-old former New York Yankees player, announced his son’s death in a social media post in March. He and wife Jessica said at the time that they “have so many questions and so few answers,” adding that they understood Miller “passed away peacefully in his sleep” during the trip.
PEOPLE later reported that Costa Rican investigators said there were “high levels of carbon monoxide contamination” in the Arenas Del Mar Beachfront & Rainforest Resort hotel room where Miller was sleeping.
Read the original article on People