The focus of the investigation into the cause of the death of former New York Yankees star Brett Gardner's son has shifted to the possibility of food poisoning, a judicial officer told Fox News Wednesday.
Miller Gardner, 14, passed away on March 21st while on vacation with his family in a Central American country. The Gardner family issued a statement through the Yankees on Sunday, and announced the tragic losses on Sunday.
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Yankees Brett Gardner will leave the field on October 2, 2021 after losing to the Tampa Bay Rays in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hanger, File)
Marisel Rodriguez Solis, the media director for the Costa Rica Judicial Investigation Police (OIJ), told Fox News that the investigation has shifted to food poisoning as the most likely cause, but choking has not yet been ruled out. Forensic and pathology test results can take one to four months to return.
Costa Rican officials have not yet interviewed the Gardners on Tuesday afternoon.
“A heartfelt, we are saddened to announce the death of our youngest son, Miller,” the Gardners said over the weekend. “He was 14 and left us as soon as he got sick with several other families on vacation,” their statement read. “There are very few questions and answers at this point, but I know that he passed away peacefully on the morning of Friday, March 21st, in sleep.
“Miller is our beloved son and brother, and we still can't understand our lives without his infectious smile. He loved soccer, baseball, golf, hunting, fishing, his family and his friends. He lived his life to the fullest every day.”
Brett Gardner, a fielder at the New York Yankees Center, will be greeted on September 30, 2021 after hitting a solo home run with the Blue Jays at Toronto's Rogers Center. (Dan Hamilton-Usa Today Sports)
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The Gardner family stayed at the Allies del Mar Hotel in Manuel Antonio and ate on Thursday at the nearby hotel's Italian restaurant. All four of us were beginning to feel sick by 11pm local time when we returned to the facility where we were staying.
Arenas del Mar Hotel called the doctor to give him medication to help with stomach problems. The next morning, Miller Gardner was found dead with traces of vomit.
“Arenas del Mar hotel protocols do not allow hotel staff to provide medicines or treatments to guests,” Arenas del Mar said in a statement. “The hotel staff immediately dispatched a medical team, including licensed doctors, who arrived to handle the emergency. The doctor's appointments to the family were done by medical professionals. Our staff did not provide treatment.
“At this point, our number one priority is respecting family privacy.”
Staff interview doctors, hotel and restaurant employees and review security footage.
Solis claimed that for nearly 20 years with OIJ, no one in Costa Rica would remember death from food poisoning.
The New York Yankees left Fielder Brett Gardner and manager Aaron Boontalk on September 24, 2019 during a match against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Kim Kumen Woosan Today Sports)
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Brett Gardner played for the Yankees from 2008 to 2021. He was with the team in 2009 when he won the World Series.
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