Officials Discover 2nd Man's Body In Point Breeze Home
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POINT BREEZE (KDKA) – Detectives found a second person dead inside of a Point Breeze home that was the site of a fire Monday evening.
A source tells KDKA that both of the men found dead inside appear to have been killed by blunt force trauma to the head.
Meanwhile, the fire was something separate. Investigators say they believe it was intentionally set when police showed up at the home.
The fire suddenly started as police arrived on Penfield Place to do a welfare check on a man reported missing out of Swissvale.
Cell phone video shows a man jumping out of a back window as the fire was burning. Witnesses tell KDKA he was handcuffed and taken to a hospital.
Police confirm one person is in custody and hospitalized, but no one has been arrested or charged.
"After the fire was out and the scene was settled, they went through and they discovered a body," said Alicia George, of Pittsburgh Public Safety.
The first deceased man found is identified as 71-year-old Steven Pariser. He is the listed owner of the four-unit building.
"They secured the scene last night and returned this morning, around 10 this morning. At which time, going through the debris again, they found another body," said George.
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office identifies the second deceased man as 54-year-old John Robert Van Dyke, of Swissvale.
There was no electricity in the home after that fire.
A source tells KDKA the second deceased man was hidden by lots of rubble and that both of the men were found dead in the basement.
