iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Police are investigating a deadly Kansas house fire as a possible homicide after finding three bodies inside, authorities said Tuesday.
Details surrounding the case are limited, but officials with the Kansas City, Kansas Police Department said the fire could have been set to cover a murder scene.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but KCK Police Chief Terry Zeigler said on Twitter that it appeared to be a homicide.
The identities of the three victims have not yet been released, but one woman told reporters that she feared her sister could be one the victims.
Patricia Green told ABC affiliate KMBC-TV that her sister, Gwen, had lived at the single-family residence for the past several months. “I hope for the best, that she’s somewhere at another location and she’ll see this broadcast and reach out to one of us and let us know that she’s OK,” Green said in an on-camera interview with KMBC.
She said she tried to call her sister multiple times, but “her phone is going straight to ‘not accepting calls.’”
The fire was reported at around 3 a.m. Tuesday, authorities said, adding that “crews experienced heavy fire conditions upon arrival.”
“Kansas City Kansas Fire Department units arrived on the scene to find a fully involved house fire. As a result of an initial search, two bodies were discovered in the residence,” the fire department said in a statement Tuesday.
“During the course of the fire investigation, a third body was discovered in the residence and the cause of death of the three victims is under investigation,” the statement added.
The fire department said it is conducting an “extensive fire investigation” and will release further details “at the appropriate time.”
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