A suspect was arrested in connection with a fatal house fire, classified as suspicious by investigators, that occurred in Fort Atkinson late Friday morning.
State fire and criminal police officials said they had a suspect in custody in connection with the death of a person believed to be a woman, but no further information was released.
The fire of unknown origin broke out in the 1 1/2 story family home at 415 Foster St. Friday around 10:45 am, and first responders discovered what they described as “severe” fire conditions, WSAU radio reports.
The State Fire Marshal Office of the DOJ Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), with assistance from the Fort Atkinson Police Department, is investigating a suspicious fatality related to the apartment fire that occurred June 11 around 11, according to a Wisconsin Justice Department (DOJ) press release on Saturday Clock
The fire investigation also included a nationwide AMBER alert on late Friday evening, which was canceled early Saturday morning when the 2-year-old was safely returned.
Late Friday morning the Fort Atkinson Fire Department and Fort Atkinson Police were called to a residential fire on Foster Street in Fort Atkinson.
According to the DOJ’s publication, the firefighters encountered severe fire conditions and eventually found a deceased adult victim in the apartment, although the deceased’s name was not disclosed.
The Fort Atkinson Fire Department and Police requested the State Fire Marshal’s office at the DOJ to investigate the death.
Investigators found the circumstances of the incident suspicious and were concerned about the whereabouts and immediate safety of a child who was in the house.
Law enforcement agencies have issued a statewide AMBER alert. However, an investigative lead led to the child being safely recovered before the alert was sent to cellphones across the state.
The AMBER Alert said the 2-year-old was with Elizabeth M. Durkee, 36, who left the scene of the fire with the child in a 2004 gray Chevrolet Malibu. The warning said that information had been received suggesting the child was in grave danger.
The DOJ’s release did not mention Durkee or the child’s name, or how the two could have been related or related to the fire.
According to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, a woman posted on Saturday who has the same name and age appears on the Jefferson County Jail’s list. The jailed woman is expected to appear in Jefferson County Circuit Court Tuesday, a MP said.
The newspaper reported that property tax records show that Christina A. Durkee is the owner of the home.
Everyone involved in the incident was known to the DOJ.
The police have now arrested a suspect in the investigation into a fatal fire.
Fort Atkinson Fire Chief Daryl Rausch has described the house as a total write-off and that it will likely be razed to the ground sometime next week once the state fire marshal’s investigation is complete.
He said he expected more information about the fire to be released at a later date.
Several fire departments responded to the call, Rausch said, noting that the extreme heat, high humidity and a hail storm challenged efforts to fight the fire. Firefighters, he said, returned to the station around 8:45 p.m.
The Friday fire marks the second fatal residential fire in Fort Atkinson this year.
The Criminal Investigation Department is conducting this investigation with the assistance of the Fort Atkinson Police Department.
The Fort Atkinson Fire Department, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, Walworth County Sheriff’s Office, Delavan Police Department and Lake Geneva Police Department, Jefferson County District Attorney and DOJ Office of Crime Victim Services also help.
This investigation is ongoing and no further information is available at this time.
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