A woman identified as Pamela Cobas died and three others were severely burned after a man set them on fire in a Buenos Aires boarding house on Monday, local police reported.
The police did not immediately announce the motive behind the attack. However, according to a statement by the Argentine LGBT Federation, the attack on the two couples is “potentially one of the most abhorrent hate crimes in recent years.”
Cobas and the other three women were set on fire in the room they shared. The fire spread to the rest of the building, causing the evacuation of the boarding house in Barracas. Seven people were hospitalized.
One is currently at the Burn Victims Hospital in critical condition, with burns covering 90% of his body.
Two were taken to Penna Hospital, where one is currently under respiratory assistance. She has life-threatening burns covering more than 50% of her body.
The others are responding well to care, according to police sources. She has been unable to testify about the attack so far, and will remain under observation until Wednesday.
The 62-year-old attacker was arrested and taken to the Argerich Hospital for treatment of an apparent self-inflicted neck wound, according to Buenos Aires’ emergency services. He was later discharged and is currently in police custody.
The case, which began as an arson investigation, is now being treated as a homicide by the Criminal and Correctional Court #14.
Firefighters found several burned rags that had been soaked in flammable liquid. Police sources say the fire department did not find any glass debris in the women’s room, indicating that the attacker did not use a Molotov cocktail in the attack.
“Hate crimes are the result of a culture of violence and discrimination, sustained by hate speech currently endorsed by several government officials,” the Federation stated in a press release.
“The only spaces to which those of us who are victims of these attacks can resort are being emptied or eliminated by the current government, like the National Institute Against Discrimination, Xenophobia and Racism (INADI).
“We will support them and help them and their families in whatever they need, and will follow the case in court so justice is served.”
