Police are conducting an extensive investigation into the Cummings Lodge apartment complex fire that left three persons dead, Region Four (A) Commander, Senior Superintendent Phillip Azore has confirmed.
A suspect was arrested after the fire which occurred on Saturday, June 27, and later released on bail after being held for three days without charge. However, Azore told Stabroek News that police investigators will be doing an extensive investigation before they seek legal advice on possible charges.
Fire Chief Marlon Gentle had previously told Stabroek News that his agency was engaging the police to investigate the fire, which occurred just around 5:30pm on July 27, at Lot E Half Sixth Street, Cummings Lodge, East Coast Demerara. The fire claimed the life of three and left at least 28 others homeless.
Autopsies confirmed that the fatalities, 14-year-old Dawall Ifill; his mother, 40-year-old Beverly Miller; and his 46-year-old stepfather Martin Lewis, all died from smoke inhalation.
The bodies of the family members were found by firemen approximately an hour and a half after they were finally able to put out the flames. The deceased persons occupied one of the apartments in the complex.
Some tenants have alleged that the fire was started by a relative of their landlord. The man was subsequently arrested. Eyewitnesses claim that they saw flames coming from a vacant apartment at the top of the building mere minutes after the man had a disagreement with one of the tenants. He was said to have been seen going and coming from the apartment before the fire began. The occupants of the apartments told this newspaper that it was not the first time that they have ended up in an altercation with the suspect, who lives nearby.
