Canada: Indian-Origin couple, daughter burn to death in Brampton

Police in the Ontario province of Canada announced on Friday that a “suspicious” fire that destroyed their home last week claimed the lives of an Indian-origin couple and their teenage daughter.

According to a Peel Police press release, a house at the intersection of Big Sky Way and Van Kirk Drive in Brampton caught fire on March 7.

Investigators discovered what appeared to be human remains inside the destroyed house after the fire was put out, but at the time, it was impossible to determine how many people had died.

Three family members were recognized as being among the burnt remains on Friday: Rajiv Warikoo, 51; Shilpa Kotha, 47; and Mahek Warikoo, 16, their daughter.

According to the police, they lived at the address prior to the fire.

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According to CTV news, Peel police Constable Taryn Young stated on Friday that the fire was considered suspicious.

“At this time, we are investigating this with our homicide bureau, and we are deeming this as suspicious as the Ontario Fire Marshal has deemed that this fire was not accidental,” the report quoted Young as saying.

“There’s not much left to it,” Young said when asked about the possible cause of the fire.

“Looking into something like that as a fire marshal, I’m sure it’s very tough when there is not much left to look at. But we are exhausting all avenues,” she said.

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The deceased family’s neighbour, Kenneth Yousaf, said that the family had lived on the street for about 15 years, and he never noticed any problems with them.

Yousaf said he was alerted to the fire last week by a family member, who heard a big “bang.” “When we came out, the house was on fire. So sad. Within a few hours, everything was down to the ground,” the report quoted Yousaf as saying.

In a press release, police said they are continuing to investigate the deaths of the three family members and urged anyone with information to come forward.

“The circumstances surrounding the house fire remains the focus of an active investigation, and anyone with information or video footage (dashcam or otherwise) is urged to contact Homicide detectives,” police said.

(With agency inputs)