The city of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, was in shock Thursday night after a massive house fire claimed the lives of eight people in what police are calling a “catastrophic” murder.
Crews and firefighters initially responded to a fire scene at the home on Thursday, but what they discovered was far more grim: the bodies of eight people.
Through conversations with witnesses, police confirmed a family of eight, including two adults and six children, resided at the home, but authorities would not confirm whether it was the same person. whether the body was found inside or not.
“Because of the complex fire it will obviously take time for us to really identify all the bodies we don’t want to say who or who they are, but what we can say right now eight bodies were found and from us. stated to witnesses that it was two adults and six children living in the house,” Broken Arrow Police Department public information official Ethan Hutchins said at a brief news conference Thursday night.
A news conference is scheduled for Friday morning and authorities are expected to provide more information on the events that occurred, but Hutchins said the vicinity is safe and free of threats. immediate threat to the public.
Preliminary reports from officers and detectives at the scene confirm that they are investigating the deaths as a homicide.
Asked if one of the deceased was responsible for the murders, Hutchins said police are still investigating and “we want to focus right away on what we know we can release that one.” .”
The medical examiner’s office was on the scene and “is looking at the condition of the bodies,” Hutchins said, but warned “this is a complicated scene, this fire is a big one and there’s a lot of potential for it. lots of moving parts for this investigation, so until we ask the medical examiner who can actually figure this out, we don’t have that. [information] for you just yet. “
He would not provide information on whether any firearms were found inside the home, only confirming that the house itself “had suffered some fire damage”. The cause of death of eight people has also not been revealed.
“It’s a tragic scene when you have a family of eight living here, our hearts go out to the Broken Arrow community because it’s a very safe city, murders don’t happen here once in a while. normal way. This is the first murder in Broken Arrow this year, we just want to focus on healing, praying and always being together.”
