Memorial planned for Senegalese family killed in house fire | iNFOnews | Thompson-Okanagan's News Source
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Memorial planned for Senegalese family killed in house fire

DENVER - Family and community leaders are planning a memorial event Saturday to bring attention to the unsolved case of an arson house fire last month in suburban Denver that killed five recent immigrants from the West African nation of Senegal.

Police released a surveillance photo in mid-August of three people believed to have started the blaze, but no arrests have been made.

Elected officials and police representatives will join family and friends Saturday afternoon on the steps of the state capitol, KMGH-TV in Denver reported Thursday.

Investigators said the suspects, wearing full face masks and dark hoodies, fled in a dark-colored sedan after the fire was set in the Green Valley Ranch neighbourhood, a relatively new development of closely spaced homes near Denver International Airport. Authorities have offered a $14,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of those responsible for setting the blaze in the early morning hours of Aug. 5.

Djibril and Adja Diol were killed in the fire along with their 22-month-old daughter Khadija, as well as relative Hassan Diol and her infant daughter Hawa Baye.

Three other people managed to escape by jumping from the second floor of the home.

Relatives and friends of the Diol family plan to speak about their loss and plea for help from the public on the investigation.

Denver Police, fire officials and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are investigating because there are indications that it was arson, authorities have said. Investigators have not elaborated on the evidence because he said he did not want to compromise the investigation.

Authorities are offering a $14,000 reward for information leading to the arrests of the three suspects.

Some Muslim advocacy groups have called on police to consider the possibility of a hate crime, but authorities say detectives are looking at all possible angles.

News from © The Associated Press, 2020
The Associated Press

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