Officials stated Tuesday that a grandfather set fire to his son and two grandchildren's home while they slept in Steelton above a convenience store on Friday.
Jafar Afshar, 67, used accelerants inside the Steelton home and set it on fire Friday, killing himself, his son Saeed Afshar, 36, and his two grandchildren, an 8-year-old boy and a 5-year-old girl whose names were not disclosed, according to Dauphin County Coroner Graham Hetrick.
Two children and their father died of thermal burns and smoke inhalation
Jafar Afshar's death was deemed a suicide, while the other three deaths were determined to be murders, as per Star Tribune. Thermal burns and smoke inhalation claimed the lives of all four. The murder victims seemed to be asleep when they died and were presumably overwhelmed by fumes; the grandfather had more thermal burns than the others.
Hetrick said there were "some signs of abnormal behavior" on the elder man's side, but he wouldn't speculate on a motive. Hetrick added authorities were still attempting to figure out what kind of accelerant was used. He added there was no evidence that anyone in the house tried to flee after the fire started.
According to authorities, all of the windows in the flat were shut by the time they arrived, which would have slowed the fire down due to a lack of oxygen. Hetrick said that it didn't appear like any of the victims attempted to flee the burning house, calling the crime "horrific," as per Daily Mail.
Thermal burns and smoke inhalation were the causes of death for Saeed and his children. According to Hetrick, Jafar died as a result of smoke inhalation and thermal burns. At the news conference held at the coroner's office, no reason for the killings was revealed.
All four perished on the 400 block of South Front Street, in an apartment above the Raja's Quick Pick Mart. Hetrick did not identify the children but was recognized as Darius and Zipporah Afshar in an online campaign for the children's mother. Those identities were correct, according to a person close to the investigation.
Grieving neighbors held memorial service
Around 6 a.m., neighbors and passers-by saw a fire in the two-story brick structure on Friday. While one of them dialed 911, the others smashed windows and rang the doorbell, attempting to alert residents to the fire. They couldn't get close to the apartment on the second floor since the sole external entry was a steel door with a lock.
Then a window on the second story blew out, pouring debris on a woman who was banging on the door. Due to a lack of fire equipment, police officers were also unable to execute any rescues when they arrived two minutes later. They took a dolly cart from the convenience shop and used it to force open the steel door.
They dashed up a flight of stairs to a second door, only to be blasted down the stairs by fire and smoke as they attempted to open it. Firefighters were able to enter the house five minutes after arriving, AL.com reported.
On Sunday, grieving neighbors and community members held a memorial service to honor the fire victims. The children's mother stated that she did not want them to gather in a dangerous situation. As a result, the mourners relocated the memorial service to a neighboring park.
It's unclear if Saeed had complete physical custody of the kids, but regular customers said they frequently saw and talked to the men and kids who resided above the store.
In a 2018 murder trial in Dauphin County, Saeed was a crucial prosecution witness. He consented to take part in the robbery of Kodi Flanagan, 22, on April 25, 2017, near Third and Muench streets in Harrisburg, but had no clue anybody would die, according to his evidence. He stated that his two young children were present while the robbery was planned.
At the trial, Saeed was one of two eyewitnesses. Sidney Michaels, 24, of Middletown, was convicted guilty of second-degree murder by a jury and is now serving a life sentence in prison. According to the relative of the building owner, Saeed and his father resided above Raja's convenience store for around 18 months.
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