The Costa Rica hotel where Brett Gardner’s 14-year-old son Miller Gardner died alleged officials made “an error,” saying the level of carbon monoxide found in the family’s room was “non-lethal.”

Miller Gardner‘s new possible cause of death is being disputed.

After Costa Rican officials said they discovered “high levels of carbon monoxide contamination” within the 14-year-old’s hotel room while investigating his untimely death, a rep for the Arenas Del Mar Beachfront & Rainforest Resort—where Miller was vacationing with his family, including his dad, former New York Yankees player Brett Gardner—alleged authorities made “an error in this initial reporting.”

“We understand the concern has grown and to clarify the high levels of carbon monoxide were in a mechanical room that guests do not occupy,” hotel spokesperson Dana Cohen told People April 1. “The levels in the hotel room were non-existent and non-lethal.”

Cohen added that the resort will wait for “conclusive results to confirm the cause of this unfortunate death.”

A public information officer for the country’s Judicial Investigation Agency told NBC News on April 1 that the department will not respond to the hotel’s claim as Miller’s death is still under investigation.

Previously, the agency’s general director Randall Zúñiga Lopez said Miller “could have died from” inhaling carbon monoxide that seeped into his room.

“It is important to point out that next to this room, there is a specialized machine room which is believed to have some type of contamination,” he said March 31 during a Spanish-language press conference. “The initial investigative findings indicate that the incident was due to this contamination, with levels as high as 600 parts per million detected—when the appropriate level in this case should be zero.”

Per the Judicial Investigation Agency, autopsy results .

In the meantime, Miller’s family will continue to wait for more details. As Brett and his wife Jessica Gardner shared in a March 23 statement, “We have so many questions and so few answers at this point, but we do know that he passed away peacefully in his sleep on the morning of Friday, March 21st.”

“Miller was a beloved son and brother and we cannot yet comprehend our life without his infectious smile,” the couple—who are also parents 16-year-old son Hunter Gardner—added. “He lived life to the fullest every single day.”

For more on Miller and the investigation surrounding his death, keep reading…

(E! and NBC News are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)

Miller and his brother Hunter were raised in South Carolina.

Despite Brett Gardner spending his entire MLB career as a member of the New York Yankees, the outfielder and his wife Jessica Clendenin Gardner—who tied the knot in 2007—kept their sons Hunter and Miller largely out of the public eye in South Carolina.

Still, they occasionally stepped out in support of their dad’s career, attending the CCandy Children’s Clothing Line Launch at MLB Fan Cave in New York in 2013.

Miller was known to live “life to the fullest every single day.” 

In a statement announcing his tragic death, Miller’s family described the 14-year-old as having an “infectious smile” and someone who “lived life to the fullest every single day.”

He was similarly remembered by the New York Yankees in a March 2025 statement, who emphasized Miller’s “outgoing and feisty personality.”

Miller was following his father Brett’s footsteps.

Like his dad, Miller was athletic, though in addition to baseball, he also took up football, golf, fishing and hunting. In a TikTok post he shared earlier this year, he emphasized his love for football by sharing photos of himself on the field, adding, “Miss it.”

Miller made an impact on the New York Yankees.  

In a March 2025 statement by the Yankees confirming Miller’s death, the organization—for whom Brett played from 2008 to 2021—remembered the teen for the “spark in his eyes” as well as a “warm and loving nature.”

The team continued in their statement, “It wasn’t just Brett who literally grew up in this organization for more than 17 years—so did his wife, Jessica, and their two boys.”

The Gardner family is still looking for answers after Miller’s sudden death.

In a statement shared by Brett’s former team, the outfielder and his family shared that after Miller and others had fallen ill while on vacation, the 14-year-old passed “peacefully in his sleep the morning of Friday, March 21.”

“Miller was a beloved son and brother,” they wrote, “and we cannot yet comprehend our life without his infectious smile.”

And amid their grief, the Gardner family expressed how they are still trying to determine what happened. As they added in their statement, “We have so many questions and so few answers at this point.”

U.S. Embassy in Costa Rica confirms why the Gardner family was in the country.

The day after Brett and Jessica revealed that Miller had died, the U.S. Embassy of Costa Rica told Inside Edition that the family was vacationing in the Central American country for spring break at the time of his death.

The Embassy also confirmed that it was in discussions with the Gardner family about transporting Miller’s body back to the U.S.

Costa Rican officials release Miller’s preliminary cause of death.

One day after Brett and Jessica announced the sudden passing of Miller, Costa Rican officials said the teenager likely died from suffocation after possibly ingesting a toxic substance.

“Preliminarily, apparently the manner of death would be by asphyxia after a possible intoxication after apparently ingesting some food,” an Organismo de Investigación Judicial spokesperson told NBC News

Miller’s cause of death as suffocation is ruled out.

However, authorities soon ruled out suffocation as his cause of death, because they did not find any obstruction in his airways. 

They shared instead that Miller—as well as his parents and sibling—had fallen ill on March 20 after returning to their hotel from a restaurant, agency spokesperson Juan Pablo Alvarado Garcia told NBC News March 25. Hotel medical staffers treated all four family members before Miller’s body was found in his room the next morning. 

The investigation is ongoing and pending medical test results.

The resort where Miller died releases a statement.

Two days after the Gardner family announced Miller’s death, the Arenas Del Mar Beachfront & Rainforest Resort where the family was vacationing in Costa Rica shared their condolences.

“We are deeply saddened by this loss, and our hearts go out to the family during this incredibly difficult time,” a representative for the hotel said in a March 25 statement to People. “The factors that led to this tragic incident are unknown, and we are fully cooperating with authorities as they investigate.”

The resort added, “We remain committed to supporting our guests and staff, prioritizing their well-being and safety, while respecting the privacy of those affected.”

The hotel also denied responsibility for the Gardner family getting sick at a nearby restaurant hours before Miller’s death.

“The family did not eat at any of Arenas Del Mar’s restaurants for lunch or dinner the previous day,” the resort’s rep continued. “Additionally, on March 14th, we had an inspection by the Health Ministry in which the hotel passed with a 98.5 out of 100.”

A Costa Rican official provides multiple major updates.

The day after the resort where the Gardner family was staying spoke out, Juan Pablo Alvarado Garcia, a spokesperson for Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigation Agency (JIA), confirmed that Miller’s autopsy results will be delayed by months due to high crime in the area.

“We’re having a hike in homicides as these drug gangs battle for territory,” he told DailyMail.com, “and every one of them needs an autopsy.”

Alvarado Garcia did confirm, though, that there was no indication Miller’s death was a result of recreational drugs or alcohol.

Though the results will be delayed, the official explained that, since “all the samples necessary” had been taken for Miller’s autopsy, his body “can be repatriated to the United States,” however, the Gardner family has been held up by the U.S. Embassy in Costa Rica’s processing of their request.

New York Yankees pay tribute to Miller.

During their Opening Day 2025 festivities March 27, Brett’s former team took a moment of silence to honor Miller.

During the tribute, players stood with their hats removed along the edge of the baseball diamond at Yankee Stadium while a picture of Miller smiling was shown on the big screen. Accompanying the snap were the words “Remembering Miller Gardner.”

Investigators discover another possible cause of death.

Miller “may have died from inhaling” carbon monoxide, according to the general director of Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigation Agency Randall Zúñiga, who said in a March 31 press conference that “high levels of carbon monoxide contamination” were found within the family’s hotel room.

Noting that a “specialized machine” was located next door, Zúñiga said authorities believe “some form of contamination may have reached the guest rooms, potentially causing the incident.”

Source: www.eonline.com