Rubby Pérez's Daughters File Lawsuit Against Jet Set Owners

SANTO DOMINGO. – Two of the daughters of Dominican merengue singer Rubby Pérez, Casiey Aileen Pérez Lebrón and Ana Beatriz Pérez Reynoso, formally filed a complaint with civil action against the owners and partners of the Jet Set entertainment center, the scene of the tragic collapse that left 236 people dead and more than 180 injured. The announcement was made through a statement addressed to public opinion, in which the artist's daughters, with the support of their relatives, indicated that the objective of this judicial process is not revenge or protagonism, but the search for justice in the face of what they describe as an avoidable loss and a serious institutional failure. The legal representation of the family is in charge of lawyers Emery Colomby Rodríguez, Cristian Mendoza and Leonardis Calcaño, members of the law firm Fortiori Consultores Legales, who will conduct the process before the corresponding instances. "The collapse of said establishment left an undetermined number of families torn apart by sudden and irreparable losses. Among them, there are people in a situation of orphanhood, sons and daughters who will have to rebuild their lives without the presence of those who cared for, loved, and guided them," expresses the document. The lawsuit, according to the statement, not only seeks criminal and civil liabilities, but is also conceived as an act of memory, a demand that the victims not be forgotten or reduced to numbers, and an invitation for the country to reflect on its mechanisms for prevention, oversight, and protection of life. "This lawsuit is a legal tool, but also an act of memory (...) May this case not pass without consequences. May it not be just another note. May it serve to correct, learn and, above all, to care," reads the text signed by the Pérez family. The signatories also thanked for the support received in the midst of the pain, while calling on the institutions of the Dominican State to act with firmness, sensitivity and responsibility. Rubby Pérez, who died as a result of the collapse that occurred last April during an artistic event at Jet Set, was considered one of the most emblematic voices of Dominican merengue. His death was added to the list of victims of a tragedy that has shocked the country and has opened a broad debate on safety in entertainment centers and the responsibility of the authorities in their inspection.

FULL STATEMENT:

There are times when silence is not an option. When life is lost in an avoidable way, when collective pain intersects with institutional abandonment, and when the hope of justice becomes the only worthy path, speaking becomes a duty. For this reason, citizens Casiey Aileen Pérez Lebrón and Ana Beatriz Pérez Reynoso, daughters of Mr. Roberto Antonio Pérez Herrera, artistically known as Rubby Pérez, with the full support of their uncles, aunts, and loved ones, inform Dominican society that, through their legal representatives, the lawyers Emery Colomby Rodríguez, Cristian Mendoza and Leonardis Calcaño have filed a complaint with civil action against the owners and partners of the entertainment center Jet Set, for the tragic events that occurred in its facilities. The collapse of the aforementioned establishment left a balance of 236 people dead, more than 180 injured, and an undetermined number of families torn apart by sudden and irreparable losses. Among them, there are people in a situation of orphanhood, sons and daughters who will have to rebuild their lives without the presence of those who cared for, loved, and guided them.

This legal process does not stem from rancor or protagonism. It arises from a deep mourning, an irreparable loss, and the need for this country to confront an uncomfortable truth: we have failed as a society when entertainment can outweigh life, and when the State does not fulfill its essential role of caring, overseeing, and preventing.

This lawsuit is a legal tool, but also an act of memory. It does not seek to punish without grounds or issue parallel judgments. It aims to have it investigated, to determine the truth, to assume responsibilities where appropriate, and for the victims not to disappear from the official narrative. Fortiori Legal Consultants has been duly empowered to conduct this process with the respect that our family deserves. From the Pérez family, we reiterate our gratitude to those who have accompanied us in these days of deep sorrow. But we also make a serene, firm, and humane call to all institutions of the Dominican State. May this case not go without consequences. May it not be just another note. May it serve to correct, learn, and, above all, to care. Because there can be no possible country if life is not protected. Because justice is not revenge: it is reparation and sanction. And because in every loss like this, the type of society we are willing to build is also at stake.