MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — Two North Carolina men visiting Miami Beach have been arrested, accused of drugging and raping a woman who later died in her hotel room, police say.
WGHP reported the suspects, 21-year-old Evoire Collier and 24-year-old Dorian Taylor, also allegedly stole the woman’s credit cards in order to spend money during a spring break trip.
Investigators are trying to determine whether the woman died of an overdose, possibly from a pill the men supplied.
According to authorities, the body of Christine Englehardt was found on March 18. Surveillance cameras from the Albion Hotel on James Avenue show her with the two men around 1 a.m. that morning.
Investigators said they believe Englehardt made contact with the suspects in a restaurant. One investigator said that a court surveillance video shows the suspects holding the victim up and that the video made it clear she was unable to consent.
Investigators said they believe the suspects gave the victim a green pill to drug her. The medical examiner has not made a ruling on the cause of death as authorities await toxicology results, officials said. If investigators find the pill that led to her death, the suspects could face manslaughter or murder charges.
Police chief says Miami partying “couldn’t go on any longer”
Pointing to over 1,000 arrests in one of the nation’s top party spots, Miami Beach officials warned Sunday that the unruly spring break crowd gathering by the thousands, fighting in the streets, destroying restaurant property and refusing to wear masks has become a serious threat to public safety.
During a last-minute meeting Sunday, city officials voted to extend a highly unusual 8 p.m. curfew for another week along famed South Beach, with the possibility of extending it well into April if needed, and stressed this isn’t the typical spring break crowd. They said it’s not college students, but adults looking to let loose in one of the few states fully open during the pandemic.
Law enforcement officers from at least four other agencies, along with SWAT teams, were added to help contain the raucous crowds, but it wasn’t enough. After days of partying, including several confrontations with police, Miami Beach officials enacted a highly unorthodox curfew Saturday from 8 p.m. until 6 a.m., forcing restaurants to stop outdoor seating entirely during the three-day emergency period, and encouraging local businesses to voluntarily shut down.
More than half of the more than 1,000 arrests were from out of state, said City Manager Raul Aguila, adding many are coming “to engage in lawlessness and an ‘anything goes’ party attitude.” He also noted that the crowds weren’t eating at restaurants or patronizing businesses generating badly needed tourism dollars, but merely congregating by the thousands in the street.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Cox Media Group
