A specially trained black labrador sniffed for signs today that an accelerant was used to start a fire after two bodies were found in a Thornton home, authorities say.
State and city investigators scoured the home at 2422 E. 96th Way for evidence explaining how the suspicious fire started, Matt Barnes, Thornton police spokesman, said.
Barnes said he does not know whether the dog, owned by a Colorado Bureau of Investigation officer, found evidence of arson.
Officers found a rifle inside the house, but officials won’t know whether the weapon is significant until an autopsy is completed, Barnes said.
The fire, which started about 10:15 a.m. Tuesday, scorched the walls and toppled the ceiling of the single-floor home.
The body of a man was found in the rear of the home near sliding glass windows. Firefighters found a second body in a bedroom, but the body was too burned to tell whether the person was a man or a woman.
Authorities have not released either victim’s name, but they have not been able to contact the couple who lived in the home with two children.
Neighbors said the family members were very quiet.
“They seemed to be a really happy family,” neighbor Melissa Trujillo, 43, said Wednesday. “I would see them loading up to go camping. This is so sad. It’s horrible.”
Kirk Mitchell: 303-954-1206 or kmitchell@denverpost.com
