Gun Store Fire Linked To Triple Murder/Suicide

"TARPON SPRINGS, FL — An explosive fire at a gun store may be linked with an apparent murder-suicide that took four lives.

"Flames were erupting from a strip mall along S. Pinellas Ave. when Tarpon Springs firefighters arrived just after 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.

"For at least an hour and a half, crews couldn't approach the building to fight the fire. Ammunition stored inside one of the stores—a gun shop—was exploding, sometimes sending bullets rocketing out of the fire.

"After keeping a safe distance more than a football field away, firefighters eventually crept closer and sent water from their trucks into a high arc down onto the building.

"By the time the flames were out, only the gutted shells remained of the strip mall's three stores: Tony's Diner, Jewelry & Watches Galore, and Silver Bullet Guns.

"Police say a person was spotted leaving the scene of that fire shortly before flames were seen.

"About 20 minutes after that fire was first reported, Tarpon Springs police responded to a motion detector alarm at a house about two miles away.

"Inside that home on 1407 Ironworks Lane, officers found the bodies of four people.

"Those people appear to have been killed in a murder-suicide, according to what police say is their preliminary investigation. The Pinellas County Medical Examiner's Office is working to confirm that conclusion.

"Officers asked a neighbor to care for two dogs that wouldn't leave the side of their owner's body, the neighbor said.

"The three apparent murder victims and one person who killed him- or herself all appear to be related or knew each other, police said.

"There is a `possible connection` between the fire and the deaths that detectives are investigating, Tarpon Springs Police Capt. Jeff Young said.

"Neighbors gave more detail, saying the people who own the house where the bodies were found also own the burned gun store, Silver Bullet Guns."

From WTSP.com...