Convicted arsonist Michael Marin collapsed to the ground and died just moments after the court read his guilty verdict. The former millionaire couldn’t afford to pay the mortgage on his Baltimore mansion and was found guilty of setting it on fire, escaping from a second floor bedroom by donning scuba gear.
Marin entered the court room with nothing but a drink bottle in his hand and he took a sip of the beverage just before sitting at the defendant’s table.
The jury eventually proclaimed:
“We the jury, duly impaneled and sworn in the above entitled action upon our oath, do find the defendant Michael James Marin guilty of arson of an occupied structure.”
Marin then dropped his hands over his face and it appears that he slid something into his mouth. He then sat back and allowed the proceedings to continue. Five minutes later Marin appeared once again to place something in his mouth and then swallow several times.
Court witnesses then say at 12:52 he took a final sip of his drink and began to convulse at first lightly and then more violently. Realizing that something was wrong his attorney called for help .
10 minutes later a cell phone video captured paramedics taking Marin to an ambulance, he was later declared dead.
According to MCSO spokesman Jeff Sprong:
“They are leaning towards that obviously if you watch the video it looks like he does put something in his mouth.”
Sprong adds:
“We cannot verify that at this point and we’re not going to be able to until the toxicology report comes back.”
Since it takes two weeks to receive toxicology reports at this time investigators can only wait for a final cause of death report.
Police in the meantime plan to talk to family and friends to see if a potential suicide was something Michael Marin had hinted at.
