Calloway fire ruled murder and arson
By Kat Russell, Reporter
The Paducah Sun
July 21, 2016
http://www.paducahsun.com/news/local/072116_PS_Fatal_Fire_Folo-608387
Preliminary autopsy results for a woman whose body was pulled from a house fire Tuesday in Calloway County have determined the cause of death to be homicide.
Kentucky State Police Detective Sgt. Kyle Nall said Linda Whittenberg, 51, of Murray was shot twice with a shotgun before the fire was set.
The second body, that of a man, has not yet been identified.
State police were called at about 12:30 p.m. Tuesday to a residence, at 135 Cedar Haven Drive near Kenlake State Resort Park, in reference to a fire.
When emergency personnel arrived, Nall said they pulled a woman from the home while the fire was still burning.
"Calloway County Fire and Rescue and EMS personnel responded to scene and found a female located inside the residence," he said.
Whittenberg was pronounced dead about 10 minutes after she was found.
About four hours later, the body of a man was found in the garage behind the residence.
"His body was damaged pretty badly by the fire and he was unidentifiable," Nall said. The detective said they are waiting on dental records to determine identity.
Preliminary autopsy results showed the man died from a combination of smoke inhalation and thermal injuries. His death has been ruled an accident.
"We don't have any reason to believe that (his death) was an intentional suicide," the detective said.
Following the KSP arson investigator's examination of the scene, Nall said the fire was ruled determined to be arson.
"It was definitely an arson," he said. "There were multiple points of origin. Fires were set in different places in the residence, the garage and even outside."
Nall said they believe the shooting and arson took place within a 20-minute period.
"Between 12:10 p.m. and 12:30 p.m. is the timeline we're looking at," he said. "There was a clock inside the residence that shut off when the fire got hot enough to shut it off, so we have a pretty good idea on what time it was when things happened."
Investigators remained on the scene through Tuesday night and into Wednesday, Nall said, adding the fire made getting to and collecting evidence difficult.
"We held the scene for a little over 24 hours while we processed it," he said. "It's a lot to deal with when you have a house fire that almost totally destroys portions of the house. We had to come in with excavating equipment and take a lot of that rubble out so we could sift through evidence."
As the investigation continues, Nall said the first priority is confirming the male body's identity.
"That's going to require us obtaining the dental records for the person we believe it to be and doing a comparison," he said. "Hopefully going from there, we'll have all the information we need as far as who he is and what occurred."
Police said they believe they know who the man is, but cannot say until his identity is confirmed. If the man is who they think he is, police believe he is the suspected shooter and arsonist.
"We have no reason to believe there's a suspect at large," Nall said.
KSP spokesperson Michael Robichaud said a dog was also found just off the home's front porch.
The animal had also been shot and killed with a shotgun. The dog, he said, did not belong to Whittenberg.
Nall said a necropsy will be done to determine if the dog was shot with the same gun.
Kentucky State Police Detective Sgt. Kyle Nall said Linda Whittenberg, 51, of Murray was shot twice with a shotgun before the fire was set.
The second body, that of a man, has not yet been identified.
State police were called at about 12:30 p.m. Tuesday to a residence, at 135 Cedar Haven Drive near Kenlake State Resort Park, in reference to a fire.
When emergency personnel arrived, Nall said they pulled a woman from the home while the fire was still burning.
"Calloway County Fire and Rescue and EMS personnel responded to scene and found a female located inside the residence," he said.
Whittenberg was pronounced dead about 10 minutes after she was found.
About four hours later, the body of a man was found in the garage behind the residence.
"His body was damaged pretty badly by the fire and he was unidentifiable," Nall said. The detective said they are waiting on dental records to determine identity.
Preliminary autopsy results showed the man died from a combination of smoke inhalation and thermal injuries. His death has been ruled an accident.
"We don't have any reason to believe that (his death) was an intentional suicide," the detective said.
Following the KSP arson investigator's examination of the scene, Nall said the fire was ruled determined to be arson.
"It was definitely an arson," he said. "There were multiple points of origin. Fires were set in different places in the residence, the garage and even outside."
Nall said they believe the shooting and arson took place within a 20-minute period.
"Between 12:10 p.m. and 12:30 p.m. is the timeline we're looking at," he said. "There was a clock inside the residence that shut off when the fire got hot enough to shut it off, so we have a pretty good idea on what time it was when things happened."
Investigators remained on the scene through Tuesday night and into Wednesday, Nall said, adding the fire made getting to and collecting evidence difficult.
"We held the scene for a little over 24 hours while we processed it," he said. "It's a lot to deal with when you have a house fire that almost totally destroys portions of the house. We had to come in with excavating equipment and take a lot of that rubble out so we could sift through evidence."
As the investigation continues, Nall said the first priority is confirming the male body's identity.
"That's going to require us obtaining the dental records for the person we believe it to be and doing a comparison," he said. "Hopefully going from there, we'll have all the information we need as far as who he is and what occurred."
Police said they believe they know who the man is, but cannot say until his identity is confirmed. If the man is who they think he is, police believe he is the suspected shooter and arsonist.
"We have no reason to believe there's a suspect at large," Nall said.
KSP spokesperson Michael Robichaud said a dog was also found just off the home's front porch.
The animal had also been shot and killed with a shotgun. The dog, he said, did not belong to Whittenberg.
Nall said a necropsy will be done to determine if the dog was shot with the same gun.
