The Costa Rican resort where 14-year-old Miller Gardner was found dead last month refuted a claim that high carbon monoxide levels could be the cause of his death.
“We understand the concern has grown and to clarify the high levels of carbon monoxide were in a mechanical room that guests do not occupy,” Dana Cohen, spokesperson for the Arenas Del Mar Beachfront & Rainforest Resort, said in a statement to Us Weekly on Tuesday, April 1. “The levels in the hotel room were non-existent and non-lethal. There was an error in this initial reporting. As mentioned, we await for conclusive results to confirm the cause of this unfortunate death.”
Arenas Del Mar said the room in which Miller — the son of former New York Yankees star Brett Gardner — died on March 21 has been closed “out of an abundance of caution” as the hotel continues “to fully cooperate with the Costa Rican judicial authorities as they conduct their investigation.”
The statement from the resort pushes back on a theory discussed by Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigative Agency (OIJ) on Monday, March 31.
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Randall Zúñiga, General Director of the OIJ, said that Miller “may have died from inhaling” carbon monoxide in a virtual communication with the press.
Zúñiga confirmed “high levels of carbon monoxide contamination” as part of testing carried out by a “specialized hazardous atmosphere team” from the Fire Department and forensic engineering performed by OIJ investigators.
“It’s also important to note that next to [the family’s] room there is a specialized machine room, from which it is believed some form of contamination may have reached the guest rooms, potentially causing the incident,” Zúñiga added.
The OIJ reported carbon monoxide contamination levels ”as high as 600 parts per million” in the area.
“The appropriate level in this case should be zero,” Zúñiga said.
After the OIJ’s initial report, the Arenas Del Mar issued a statement to Us Weekly addressing the organization’s findings.
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“We deeply regret the recent death of a minor at our facilities due to unconfirmed causes,” the statement read. “We express our sincere condolences to the child’s family and loved ones in this time of immense grief. We are respectfully and diligently collaborating with the Costa Rican judicial authorities, who have assumed the corresponding investigation.”
The hotel’s statement continued, “We trust that the forensic process will objectively, clearly, and conclusively clarify the real causes of this unfortunate incident. For the time being, the investigation will continue with the analysis of the various theories put forward by the judicial authorities.”
Miller’s body was found in his hotel room on the morning of March 21 while vacationing with his family in the tourist region of Manuel Antonio.
Official autopsy and toxicology reports are not expected for months.
