Police believe they know the identity of the body found in a burned house last week, but they are awaiting DNA verification before releasing a name, according to Police Information Officer Diane Drayton.
The verification is in process, but police aren’t sure when it will be complete, Ms. Drayton told the Beacon.
The body was uncovered under several layers of debris inside a home gutted by fire during the night of June 11 in the Red Bay area of East End, police said.
The discovery was apparently unexpected: Opposition member Marlon Penn, who represents District Eight, stated the following morning in a Facebook post that no one had been harmed in the blaze.
Officials have not said what started the fire or provided further information.
‘Heroic actions’
Mr. Penn’s Facebook post also commended fire officers and members of the public who responded.
“Were it not for their swift and heroic actions to contain and extinguish last night’s fire in Red Bay, the circumstances could have been so much [worse] for the properties and lives of persons living in the Red Bay/Parham Town community,” Mr. Penn wrote.
He added that he witnessed their actions first-hand.
“I therefore give our community’s collective gratitude and appreciation as representative for the efforts of all persons involved,” he stated.