FBI conducting toxicology tests following deaths of 9 American tourists in the Dominican Republic
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As part of an investigation into the unexplained deaths of nine American tourists over the last 13 months in the Dominican Republic, the FBI is testing samples taken from a minibar at one of the hotels where some of the Americans stayed, Dominican officials told CNN on Wednesday.
The samples were taken from the Bahia Principe Hotel. Ministry of Health communications director Carlos Suero told CNN that whenever a person dies in a Dominican hotel room, authorities test samples collected from the room's minibar, sink, and shower for bacteria.
In several cases, families of the deceased have said their loved one had a drink from the minibar before their death. Dominican officials are adamant that these were isolated cases and there's no reason for worried people to cancel their vacations.
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
