Two Held in Canadian’s Death at Dominican Resort
Two Held in Canadian’s Death at Dominican Resort
A judge ordered a Canadian and an Algerian tourist detained Monday in the death of another Canadian following a fight outside a beach resort bar. The judge in the eastern city of Higuey ruled there was enough evidence to hold Canadian citizen Dmytro Aref Yev and Algerian national Bouzid Redha for at least three months on suspicion of voluntary homicide.
The judge ordered three other Canadian tourists released on bail and ordered them to say in the country, deciding they did not have a direct role in the fight that resulted in the death of Jordan Morrison, 19, of Barrie, Ontario.
Voluntary homicide carries a potential sentence of 30 years in prison in the Dominican Republic but the country’s laws also allow for lengthy detention without bail while a case is under investigation.
The two detained men, both of whom live in Montreal, are accused of causing the fatal injuries Morrison suffered in a fight Saturday at the Grand Paradise Bavaro hotel in Punta Cana, about 120 miles (200 kilometers) east of Santo Domingo.
Police said the fight, which involved bottles, began over unspecified “personal differences” but have not released further details. Eloy Bello, a lawyer for the detained men, said the fight apparently started when Morrison intervened in a fight between a woman and one of the other tourists.
He said the accused should face no more than the lesser charge of involuntary homicide because Morrison’s death was an accident that occurred when he fell and struck his head on the ground during the fight. “They were all very drunk,” Bello said.
