Press Releases

Deadly Immokalee Arson
February 28, 2009

It’s now been two years since the images of a family torn apart by arson have cluttered a small trailer park in Immokalee – where two children and three adults burned to death in a fire set by an unknown assailant. But the case remains unsolved – and the person responsible for those deaths is still on the run.

“It’s an arson. We’re treating it as a homicide. People died as a result of that arson. People were murdered," said Collier County Det. Andy Henchensmoore.

The blaze was set on March 4th, 2007 in the middle of the night. Chicken wire on the windows kept some of the residents from getting out quickly. Among those who perished in the fire was seven year old Rodrigo Mendez, his 14 year old sister and his mom.

Detectives said at least three smaller fires were set at that same trailer in the weeks leading up to the arson, but it was this last one that proved to be deadly.

Over the last two years, investigators with the Collier County Sheriff’s Office and the State Fire Marshal’s Office have conducted dozens of meetings with churches and community groups in hopes of finding an answer to this tragedy.

But still nothing. Yet detectives remain optimistic that there’s someone out there with information that will lead to justice for the five people who died that night.

“We haven’t had a lot of witnesses come forward in this case, so we’re looking for anyone who might have heard anything – even word on the street. What they may think is insignificant might mean something to us,” Henchensmoore said.

Despite the fact that two years have passed, investigators are determined to find the identity of the person responsible for setting the fire, and killing five innocent victims. But they need the public to lend a hand, and provide even the slightest bit of information that will help bring justice to a family, and a community, that will forever be scarred by the hands of an arsonist.

“Names, nicknames, car descriptions… anything,” Henchensmoore said.

Both Crime Stoppers and the State Fire Marshal’s Office are offering cash rewards for information leading to an arrest in this case. All it takes is one anonymous phone call.

Anyone with information on the deadly fire in Immokalee is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-780-TIPS (8477). All callers will remain anonymous and will be eligible for up to $1,000 in cash rewards. Tips may also be made online at www.swflcrimestoppers.org.