Crime | Fire in hotel likely caused by neighbor’s cigarette butt

A Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesperson said that a fire in a high-end hotel is likely to have been caused by a cigarette butt thrown by someone from the residential complex next to the hotel.

The case was reported by the Fire Services (CB) to the PJ. On Sunday morning, firemen were called to extinguish a fire that occurred in the pool area of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel.

According to CB’s preliminary report, the blaze appears to have started at the corner of the pool area on the fourth floor of the hotel. The apparent cause of the fire was a cigarette butt that set fire to the floor.

Upon further investigation, the CB has for now abandoned the idea that the cigarette butt might have been left by a hotel guest or staff member, since the area was closed off and inaccessible. Surveillance cameras in the hotel did not capture footage of any person in the area, leaving the most probable explanation to be that the cigarette butt was thrown from one of the apartment buildings nearby.

The PJ is still investigating this case. No injuries were sustained in the fire despite damage to the hotel.

In a separate case reported by the Public Security Police Force, a local male aged approximately 30 years old or over, was caught driving under the influence of alcohol on Friday morning, February 23, after a traffic accident occurred in Avenida da Amizade in the surroundings of Oceanus Casino.

According to the police report, the man had driven out of his lane and crashed into another vehicle.
Both drivers were uninjured but were taken to the Conde de São Januário Hospital Center for blood alcohol level testing. The driver tested positively for alcohol, at a concentration of 2.74 grams of alcohol per blood liter.

The case has been forwarded to the Public Prosecutions Office for further prosecution under charges of driving under the influence of the alcohol. RM