Former owner of Alpine Motel pleads guilty in deadly Las Vegas fire

The former owner of the Alpine Motel Apartments has reached a plea deal with prosecutors in the deadliest residential fire in Las Vegas history.

Adolfo Orozco pleaded guilty on Friday to two counts of involuntary manslaughter and one count of performance of an act or neglect of duty in willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property resulting in substantial bodily harm or death, confirmed Chief Deputy District Attorney John Giordani. By pleading guilty, Orozco avoids a lengthy trial that was scheduled to go forward in February, more than five years after the deadly fire.

Orozco’s defense attorney, Dominic Gentile, said his client entered what is known as an Alford plea, meaning Orozco only admitted that prosecutors had enough evidence to convict him.

“He’s not agreeing with or admitting to any of the facts, but he’s saying that the state could prove them,” Gentile said.

Prosecutors also agreed not to argue for any specific sentence for Orozco, although they will be able to present evidence of the facts and circumstances surrounding the case during the sentencing hearing, Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said.

Orozco could face probation or up to 13 years in prison for the three felony charges.

Wolfson declined to say if he believes Orozco should serve prison time.

“I would just say that I believe justice will be served, and this judge, who’s an experienced judge, will do what she feels is best under the circumstances.”

The fire on Dec. 21, 2019, left six dead, 13 injured and dozens without shelter. The criminal case had resumed in 2023 after nearly two years of delays over courtroom proceedings.

The six people who died are Kerry Baclaan, 46; Henry Lawrence Pinc, 70; Cynthia Mikell, 61; Donald Keith Bennett, 63; Tracy Ann Cihal, 57; and Francis Lombardo Jr., 72. Orozco had previously faced six counts of involuntary manslaughter and 21 counts of disregarding the safety of a person resulting in death or substantial bodily harm.

Orozco, who is also identified in court documents as Adolfo Orozco-Garcia, remains out of custody. A sentencing hearing in the case is scheduled for June 3.

Prosecutors had accused Orozco of acting like a “slumlord” by failing to properly maintain the building and ignoring issues with the fire alarm system and a bolted backdoor, which prevented residents from escaping during the fire.

Gentile said it wasn’t until days ago that prosecutors agreed to the Alford agreement and not to pursue a specific sentence.

“I couldn’t turn it down,” he said about the plea deal.

Wolfson also said the plea deal is a “good result” for the case. By pleading guilty, Orozco waives his right to appeal and avoids a lengthy trial with multiple “legal issues,” Wolfson said.

“We are pleased that the defendant accepted responsibility,” Wolfson said. “This is a complicated, difficult case with a tortured history.”

Gentile said that Orozco never denied responsibility, but that if the case reached trial, he would have argued that others also contributed to the conditions at the motel during the fire.

Prosecutors had previously filed charges against the building’s property manager, Malinda Mier, who was accused of failing to fix the blocked back door.

A preliminary hearing in the case was put on hold for nearly two years because of the prosecution against Mier, after an investigator working for Orozco’s team refused to testify about an interview he held with Mier.

A Supreme Court ruling eventually affirmed a judge’s decision to hold the investigator in contempt. But at the conclusion of the preliminary hearing in 2023, Justice of the Peace Ann Zimmerman dismissed all of the charges Mier faced.

Shortly after the blaze, the Las Vegas Review-Journal obtained records showing that inspectors found 42 fire code violations in the building, including the locked door, missing or defective smoke detectors, and a lack of a functioning sprinkler system. At the time of the fire, it had been almost three years since the building had undergone a city fire inspection.

The upcoming sentencing hearing probably will include multiple victims or victim family members giving impact statements to District Judge Jacqueline Bluth, Wolfson said.

Gentile expects to argue for his client to receive probation and said that Orozco has had no issues while being out of custody on bail.

“What’s to be gained by putting him in prison?” Gentile said.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240.