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REPORTING OFFICER'S NARRATIVE
(Brief narrative of the facts surrounding the offense
and the arrest.) R/Is arrived at
1315 Mesquite Drive at
2:04 p.m. to execute a search warrant on the premises. Upon
arrival, R/Is observed significant portions of the garage and
first floor of the residence heavily involved in flames and
smoke. R/Is immediately contacted Dispatch to notify the
Yoknapatawpha County Fire Department to respond posthaste. R/Is
also requested that a CSU team be dispatched to process the
scene after the fire was extinguished. Environmental conditions at the scene upon arrival
are as follows: Weather: Overcast; Exterior Ambient Temperature:
54°F/12°C; Relative
Humidity: 82%.
R/Is were unable to gain entry to the
structure because of the intensity of the heat, flames and
smoke. R/Is observed no signs of life from inside the residence
or garage. YCFD Station 14 arrived on the scene at 2:11 p.m. and
immediately initiated firefighting measures.
R/Is conducted a preliminary canvass of
onlookers, all identified as residents of the immediate area.
None reported seeing or hearing anything unusual from the
Hartigan residence that day. None reported noticing the fire
before it was called in by R/Is. Witnesses reported last seeing
Alicia Hartigan around 6:00 p.m. on the evening of March 14,
2005 as she was driving into her driveway. Witnesses said they
had not seen Adam Hartigan in several days. A more detailed
witness canvass will be conducted at a later time.
CSU arrived on the scene at 2:39 p.m. and
stood by until receiving clearance from the YCFD commander to
begin processing the scene.
YCFD commander Lincoln Bales notified R/Is
at 4:52 p.m. that the scene was clear and it was relatively safe
to enter for investigative purposes. Bales indicated that
firefighters had observed two bodies in the front (south side)
of the residence. Bales further reported that, based on
preliminary observations of burn patterns and odor within the
scene, it appeared that an accelerant was likely involved in the
fire.
After receiving notification from YCFD of
bodies at the scene, R/Is contacted Dispatch and requested that
Coroner's Inspector Luwinda Johnson be notified to respond to
the scene.
R/Is entered the scene through the garage.
Inside the garage, R/Is observed a silver 1999 Mercedes-Benz
C280 automobile, Mississippi license
tag # FLM 783, and a dark red 2002 Saturn L300 automobile,
Mississippi license tag # ARX 225. Both vehicles were
partially burned. R/Is proceeded to the main residence. R/Is
observed alligator burn patterns in the garage area and
continuing into the main residence to the living room area. R/Os
observed two severely burned bodies in the living room area,
both in supine positions on the floor. The victims could not be
visually identified, though R/Os observed that one appeared to
be male and the other appeared to be female. In the ashes
adjacent to the bodies, R/Is observed a Glock 19 9mm
semi-automatic pistol. CSU technicians reported they had found
two 9mm shell casings in the ashes near the bodies.
Coroner's Inspector Luwinda Johnson
arrived on the scene at 5:30 p.m. and joined R/Is in the living
room area. Inspector Johnson pronounced the victims (Person 1
and Person 2) deceased at 5:36 p.m. by visual observation that
the victims were severely burned beyond the point of survival.
Inspector Johnson was unable to provide an estimate on time of
death or cause of death at the scene, but indicated that further
details may be available following autopsy. R/Is notified
Inspector Johnson that the possible identities of the deceased
are Adam Hartigan and Alicia Hartigan and suggested the
Coroner's Office contact local dentists to obtain dental records
for both of the aforementioned persons for identification
purposes.
CSU technicians reported the discovery of
a hacksaw consistent with the item sought in the original search
warrant. R/Is observed the hacksaw was burned in the fire but
not destroyed. R/Is then proceeded to the shop area north of the
garage area and examined the area for any potential evidence. At
the rear (north end) of the shop, R/Is observed a black wheeled
suitcase with an extendable handle, consistent with the item
sought in the search warrant. Initial examination found the
suitcase contained clothing, toiletries and similar items. The
suitcase was taken into evidence for further inspection and
analysis.
YCFD commander Bales notified R/Is at 6:09
p.m. that, after further examination of the scene, the YCFD had
concerns about the integrity of the structure and recommended
that R/Is suspend further investigation of the interior until
measures could be taken to address the issues. R/Is moved to the
exterior of the residence and inspected the perimeter. Because
of the fading daylight, only a cursory inspection could be
conducted. No signs of forced entry were noted at any potential
entry point to the residence.
R/Is inspected the interior of the pool
house, but found no immediate signs of recent or previous
violence or criminal activity of any kind. However, R/Is asked
CSU to include the pool house in their processing of the scene.
At 8:15 p.m., YCFD commander Bales
notified R/Is that the structure was likely safe enough to
remove the bodies but he recommended no other actions be taken
inside the residence or garage until the following day, when
firefighters could address the structural issues in the
daylight.
The human remains were remanded into the custody of Coroner's Inspector Luwinda
Johnson. The deceased were removed from scene at 8:25 p.m. and
transported to the coroner's office for autopsy.
R/Is left the location at
9:15 p.m. Before leaving, R/Is arranged for uniformed officers
to be posted at the scene overnight to secure the scene. R/Is instructed CSU to seal the scene
upon completion or end of shift suspension of processing. CSU to
notify R/Is of progress by the end of this date. As of this
filing, CSU is still actively processing the scene.
Evidence remanded into the
custody of Forensics Officer T. R. Douglas for transport to the
State Crime Lab for routine analysis. CSU is expected to submit
an inventory of items taken into evidence within fourteen days
of this report, with detailed report(s) of their findings to
follow at a later date.
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