Rival Nightclub Owner Arrested In Fatal Fire

An arson attack that killed 13 people at a nightclub this month was planned by the owner of a rival club and carried out by three bouncers, police said Sunday.

The four men were among seven who were arrested Saturday in connection with the fire at the Meia Culpa club in Amarante, 300 miles north of Lisbon.

The owner of the Diamante Negro nightclub, also in Amarante, is suspected of plotting the April 16 attack, National Police Chief Fernando Negrao said.

“The motive was competition for business between these two bars,” Negrao said.

Police said three men entered the Meia Culpa about 4 a.m., doused the club with gasoline and set it on fire. The men wore hoods and prevented people from leaving, shooting one man in the back as he tried to escape, authorities said.

The three, each said to be about 20 years old, were bouncers at nightclubs in the nearby city of Oporto and were paid $5,800 each, Negrao said.