Coral Gables Fire Was Arson: Officials

April fire in an office building that specializes in plane charters to Cuba was deliberate, officials said.

The fire that engulfed a company that charters flights to Cuba was deliberately set, according to a Coral Gables Fire Department report.

Officials said the blaze began after a piece of pavement was thrown through the office window with an incendiary device, the Miami Herald reported.

Airline Brokers Company, Inc. located on the first floor of 815 Ponce de Leon was set aflame on April 27. The company, which has operated for almost 30 years, charters seven flights to Cuba each week, primarily out of Miami International Airport. It had just transported hundreds of South Florida Catholics to see Pope Benedict XVI in Cuba.

According to the report, fire officials found a disposable lighter outside the company’s office, the Herald said.

Company owner Vivian Mannerud told NBC 6 back in April that she speculated the fire was related to the controversy surrounding the international flights.

“There are people who are just against anything that has to do with Cuba,” she said.

No suspects have been named.

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