Doral vice mayor wants in-depth review of Prieto’s work over link to Surfside tragedy

Vice Mayor wants to review city’s work with CAP Government, Inc.

FILE - In this Friday, June 25, 2021, file photo, rescue personnel work in the rubble at the Champlain Towers South Condo, in Surfside, Fla. Even as the search continues over a week later for signs of life in the mangled debris of the fallen Champlain Towers South, the process of seeking answers about why it happened and who is to blame is already underway in Florida's legal system. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File) (Gerald Herbert, Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

DORAL, Fla. – Doral’s vice mayor announced Tuesday that he wants a more in-depth review of the work by the former city’s top building official after he was linked to the Surfside building collapse.

Vice Mayor Doral Pete Cabrera is asking for a revision of everything having to do” with Prieto and he is calling a special council meeting to ask for a review of “everything that has passed through the hands” of CAP Government, Inc., formerly CAP Engineering Consultants.

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Doral officials said Prieto Rosendo “Ross” Prieto, 54, was an employee of the Coral Gables-based company that provides services to local governments.

Prieto was the former top building official for the town of Surfside who didn’t alert Champlain Towers South Condominium Association of the dangers in the building. He allegedly failed to do so even after a 2018 engineer’s report that was full of red flags.

Prieto joined Surfside in 2013 and left in November. He started working in Doral in May as the interim building official. Edie Ousley, a spokeswoman for CAP Government, said Tuesday afternoon, Prieto only worked in Doral for roughly 30 days and was on a leave of absence.

“He was actually out for a rather lengthy period of time,” Ousley said, adding Prieto’s actions in Doral were limited to him reviewing five permit applications. “He did not personally issue any permits.”

Ousley added the city of Doral has already done a review of Prieto’s work. Cabrera wants further action and is awaiting a response from the city manager Tuesday afternoon.

“It would be irresponsible of me not to verify any project that has passed through the hands of this ex-employee in our city,” Cabrera said in a statement.

Prieto also listed experience as an inspector at the cities of Hialeah, Miami Shores, Miami Beach, and Miami.

The New York Times linked Prieto to the 1997 Biscayne Kennel Club in Miami Shores and to a history of troubled personal finances. The Wall Street Journal linked Prieto to penthouses at the Champlain Towers South that violated the town’s code.

The Champlain Towers South partially collapsed on June 24. Engineers demolished the ruins on Sunday, as rescue teams continue to find residents’ bodies. The official death toll was 32 on Tuesday.

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July 1

June 30

June 29

June 28: Residential property audit announced by Miami-Dade mayor already underway

June 25: Surfside collapse could have impact on South Florida real estate market

COMPLETE COVERAGE

Surfside building collapse

The timeline of a tragedy

Coverage of July 5

Rescue workers handle a tarp containing recovered remains at the site of the collapsed Champlain Towers South condo building, Monday, July 5, 2021, in Surfside, Fla. The remaining structure was demolished Sunday, which partially collapsed June 24. Many people remain unaccounted for. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Coverage on July 4

FILE - In this late Sunday, July 4, 2021, file photo, the remaining structure of the Champlain Towers South condo building is demolished more than a week after it partially collapsed, in Surfside, Fla. Even as the search continues over a week later for signs of life in the mangled debris, the process of seeking answers about why it happened and who is to blame is already underway in Florida's legal system. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Coverage on July 3

In this satellite image provided by Maxar Technologies heavy-lift cranes are used to aid in the search and recovery operation at the partially collapsed Champlain Towers South condo building on Saturday, July 3, 2021, in Surfside, Fla. (Maxar Technologies via AP) (Satellite image ©2021 Maxar Technologies)

Coverage on July 2

FILE - In this Friday, July 2, 2021, file photo, search and rescue personnel remove remains on a stretcher as they work atop the rubble of the Champlain Tower South complex in Surfside, Fla. Nobody has been found alive since the first hours of the June 24 disaster that killed at least 27 people in the town of Surfside, so updating the families has so far been a matter of delivering bad news. And what crews are finding is often not intact. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Coverage on July 1

FILE - In this July 1, 2021, file photo President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden visit the Surfside Wall of Hope & Memorial in Surfside, Fla., for the people missing after the condo tower that collapsed earlier in the week. The Bidens spent the day meeting with first responders, local and government officials and visiting with families who have been impacted by the collapse. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Coverage on June 30

Search and rescue personnel work atop the rubble at the Champlain Towers South condo building, where scores of people remain missing almost a week after it partially collapsed, Wednesday, June 30, 2021, in Surfside, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Coverage on June 29

Search and rescue workers comb the rubble of an oceanfront condo building that collapsed, with many dead and unaccounted for, in Surfside, Fla., Tuesday, June 29, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Coverage on June 28

FILE - In this June 28, 2021, file photo, workers search the rubble at the Champlain Towers South Condo in Surfside, Fla. Search and rescue teams from Miami-Dade have been described as among the best and most experienced in the world. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Coverage on June 27

This aerial image shows an oceanfront condo building that partially collapsed three days earlier, resulting in fatalities and many people still unaccounted for, in Surfside, Fla., Sunday, June 27, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Coverage on June 26

FILE - In this Saturday, June 26, 2021, file photo, rescue workers search in the rubble at the Champlain Towers South Condo, in Surfside, Fla. Even as the search continues over a week later for signs of life in the mangled debris of the fallen Champlain Towers South, the process of seeking answers about why it happened and who is to blame is already underway in Florida's legal system. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Coverage on June 25

FILE - In this Friday, June 25, 2021, file photo, rescue personnel work in the rubble at the Champlain Towers South Condo, in Surfside, Fla. Even as the search continues over a week later for signs of life in the mangled debris of the fallen Champlain Towers South, the process of seeking answers about why it happened and who is to blame is already underway in Florida's legal system. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Coverage on June 24

This photo taken from video provided by ReliableNewsMedia firefighters rescue a survivor from the rubble of the Champlain Towers South Condo after the multistory building partially collapsed in Surfside, Fla., early Thursday, June 24, 2021. (ReliableNewsMedia via AP).

About the Author:

The Emmy Award-winning journalist joined the Local 10 News team in 2013. She wrote for the Miami Herald for more than 9 years and won a Green Eyeshade Award.