Arrest made in 2018 San Marcos apartment fire that killed Pasadena native, officials say
SAN MARCOS, Texas (KTRK) -- Pasadena native David Ortiz was 21 years old when he was killed in a fire off-campus from Texas State University. Now, nearly five years after the blaze, police said they have made a break in the case and arrested a suspect.
A multi-agency press conference is slated for Thursday morning to announce the arrest in the 2018 fire at the Iconic Village Apartments that killed five people.
The fire broke out on July 20, 2018, at the complex, which mostly houses Texas State University students. By the time it was out, seven were injured, and five were dead, including David.
RELATED: 'A mother's worst nightmare': Pasadena native amongst 5 unaccounted for in San Marcos fire
On Nov. 30, 2018, months after the fire, the San Marcos Fire Department and the Houston Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) ruled that the fire was intentionally set.
An investigative team was formed in October 2020, dedicated to solving the investigation. No other updates had been released, until now. The identity of the suspect nor the charges he faces have not been disclosed.
In addition to Ortiz, the following victims' lives were claimed that day:
- Dru Estes, 20, of San Antonio
- Belinda Moats, 21, of Big Wells
- Haley Michele Frizzell, 19, of San Angelo
- James Phillip Miranda, 23,of Mount Pleasant
Multiple other people were injured in the fire, including Zachary Sutterfield, who sustained third-degree burns to nearly 70 percent of his body and a brain injury.
A year after the fire, ABC13 spoke with David Ortiz's family. They say students told police that they never heard the alarms, or heard them too late. The family admits they never checked the smoke alarm when David found the off-campus apartment.
"It makes me upset that one minor little detail caused so much devastation," Jessica Sanchez, Ortiz's Sister, said.
As a result, they created a foundation to prevent another tragedy like this from happening again.
His family created The David A. Ortiz Foundation, which provides Pasadena Memorial High School students attending Texas State with a thousand-dollar scholarship. In addition to money, each recipient also receives a smoke detector, which Ortiz's family hopes saves lives after a fire forever changed theirs.
