In the days after the fatal Princeton Avenue fire in April 2005, Daniel Murray’s co-workers at R.J. Bentley’s chided him about possibly being responsible for Michael Scrocca’s death, knowing he was upset about being teased at a nearby house the night Scrocca died, two of Murray’s co-workers said.
Teasing was common among the restaurant’s barbacks, they said, and they only joked in this case because they couldn’t imagine he could be capable of involvement.
The co-workers spoke on the condition that they remain unnamed because Murray’s parents asked his friends not to speak to the media and because of the sensitivity of the investigation.
A source close to the investigation previously confirmed that on the night of the fire, Murray returned to Bentley’s, where he had worked since the beginning of the 2004-2005 school year, after partygoers on the front porch of a house had heckled him as he passed by.
A source said that upon reaching the bar around 2 a.m., Murray told a few co-workers at Bentley’s that he was teased by partygoers at a house not farther than Rhode Island Avenue. He asked a few of them to go back to the house with him, but they refused because he was very drunk.
It was then that police believe Murray went back to Scrocca’s rental house looking for a fight. Upon seeing that everyone was asleep, police believe he lit a broom on fire and tossed it on a couch near the front porch. The house was quickly engulfed, but many of the roommates escaped – including one who leapt out of a window. Scrocca died of smoke inhalation.
Days later, Bentley’s co-workers joked with Murray that he was involved and asked him if it was the Princeton Avenue house where he had been heckled and if he was responsible for the fire. Murray “kind of mulled the subject over” but said no, one co-worker said, and the joking was put to rest.
“We did joke around about Danny doing it,” the co-worker said. “[But] the thing was that it didn’t seem suspicious. That’s why we were able to joke around.”
One of Murray’s co-workers said it was not clear whether jokes about Murray’s involvement came from anyone with actual knowledge of his involvement or just because many knew Murray had been drunk and angry about being teased at a nearby house that night.
“If anybody at Bentley’s thought there was truth to it, they would have turned him in,” the co-worker said. “I took it as they were joking and f—ing with Danny just to f— with him, and Danny didn’t seem to take it too seriously.”
Bentley’s General Manager Pat Ahern denied there had been any rumors circulating and declined to comment further.
Investigators previously revealed that at least six people – including one co-worker at Bentley’s – knew about Murray’s involvement for an extended period of time before the anonymous tip that led to Murray’s arrest came in.
The co-workers described Murray as naive and without a temper. They said they did not know of his involvement in the fire until recently, when police questioned many at Bentley’s, and Murray was arrested and charged for first-degree murder and arson.
One co-worker described Murray and his fellow barbacks as “rough and tumble guys” who play rugby and rag on each other frequently, so they didn’t give much weight to the teasing about that night.
He was generally good-natured about being teased, they said.
“Even if somebody dumped a beer on him, he’d go get a bouncer or something,” the co-worker said.
One co-worker also said Murray often drank heavily, but noticed that Murray stopped soon after the fire. The co-worker did not think much of it at the time.
That co-worker also said Murray spent his time working at Bentley’s three days a week or hanging out at his girlfriend’s house. A cell biology and molecular genetics major, Murray spent a lot of time studying and planned to go to medical school.
The other Bentley’s co-worker described Murray as naive and “really still a high school kid” emotionally.
“His age was higher than his emotional level,” the co-worker said.
During the 2004-2005 school year, Murray lived with a relative in Hyattsville, the co-worker said, and he worked about 30 hours a week and struggled with grades.
Contact reporter Scott Dance at dancedbk@gmail.com.
