Who Is Carlos Suero? New Details On The Dominican Republic Health Minister Who Calls Deaths Of American Tourists Fake News
He's convinced.
Twitter/Facebook When people decide to go on vacation, they're looking to put all of their cares behind them. The last thing anyone wants when they go to escape from it all is to discover a new set of problems awaiting them at their resort. Unfortunately, what was supposed to be an amazing getaway for several American tourists quickly turned into a nightmare. In the past year nine American tourists visiting the Dominican Republic have died and dozens more have become very, very sick. The government spokesperson, Carlos Suero, swears that it's a fluke, but with the FBI getting involved that's seeming less and less likely. Here's what we know so far. Who is Carlos Suero?
1. Fake News?
So far nine American tourists who visited the island nation of the Dominican Republic in the past year have died while staying at one of the vacation resort locations. Between these deaths and the shooting of former Red Sox legend David Ortiz, the country's reputation is floundering and for a country based on tourism, that's not a good thing in the least.
Now, Carlos Suero with the country's Ministry of Public Health is speaking out and what he has to say doesn't sound great. Suero went on the offense, lashing out and calling allegations of something odd afoot as being fake news. “It’s all a hysteria against the Dominican Republic, to hurt our tourism, this is a very competitive industry and we get millions of tourists, we are a popular destination,” he said. “People are taking aim at us.”
2. "Natural Causes"
According to Suero and to the medical officials who handled the deaths, everyone who has died in the DR this past year died from natural causes. “The testing results are all negative, everything — the food, the alcohol, the air — is normal, there is no alteration of the alcohol,” said Suero. “With all the tourists we get every year, we make sure we comply with international standards for everything.”
Right now, however, the country hasn't had great luck getting the U.S. State Department to agree with their claims. As of right this very second, the State Department hasn't shared any details about the intestigation with the American public, not are they in a rush to confirm or deny Suero's claims that every test result that came back was a-okay. It's something worth noting.
3. Death Toll
According to the U.S. State Department, nine tourists from the United States have died since the summer of 2018 after they became sick while visiting the Domincian Republic. If you want to factor in all of the Americans who have gotten sick while they visited, then the numbers go way up: dozens of people are coming forward to confirm illness.
Of the nine tourists who died in the country, so far the FBI and the CDC are investigating just six of those cases. Right now, while the agencies cannot begin to reveal any details (since it is an ongoing investigation) there are facts that we can't ignore. Take, for example, that almost all of the deaths being investigated happened in almost identical ways.
4. FBI Involvment
Those actively following the case probably already know that currently, the FBI has landed on the island and is quickly getting to work to try and solve this case once and for all. They are investigating the four deaths at Grand Bahia Principe La Romana.
Nathaniel Edward Holmes, 63, and Cynthia Ann Day, 49, were discovered dead in their room on May 30 at La Romana. Just five days before that Miranda Schaup-Werner, 41, fell down and died after drinking a cocktail from her minibar. Last year, Yvette Monique Sport, 51, also collapsed. The FBI is also investigating the two deaths at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, David Harrison, 45, died in July 2018 and Robert Bell Wallace, 67, died last April.
5. Minibar Evidence
The biggest news regarding this case currently is that the FBI will spending extra time investigating the minibars at the various resort locations where the deaths occurred. Suero doesn't believe this is necessary as the rooms have already been tested. The FBI taking a closer look could mean that they suspect something isn't quite right with the first set of tests.
That said, the FBI is making it perfectly clear that these results aren't something that they will be able to snap their fingers and suddenly have. This kind of intensive testing takes a significant amount of time, upwards of 30 days. Hopefully, at the end, they will have more answers than we do now.
Rebecca Jane Stokes is a writer living in Brooklyn, New York with her cats, Batman and Margot. She's an experienced generalist with a passion for lifestyle, geek news, pop culture, and true crime.