House Fire Was Murder/Suicide

"MAINE TOWNSHIP, IL - A house fire that took the lives of a Maine Township couple last week was ruled a murder-suicide, investigators reported Monday.

"Lisa Gordon, spokeswoman for the Cook County Sheriff's Department, said investigators, citing physical evidence and interviews with family members, believe Aleykutty Yohannan, 65, intentionally started the fire that killed her and her husband, 69-year-old Philipose Yohannan, inside their suburban duplex Sept. 14 on the at 9300 block of Home.

"Gordon said gas had been poured in the first-floor dining room, which had been converted into the couple's bedroom. A gas can, which family members said was normally stored inside the garage, was found inside the kitchen, Gordon said.

"The couple's daughter-in-law had been asleep upstairs at the time of the fire and woke up when she smelled smoke, Gordon said. She was able to exit the house and was not injured."

From the Chicago Sun-Times...