ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A man was arrested on murder charges in Puerto Rico in connection with a fatal house fire in Orange County, sheriff’s officials said Thursday.
Bryan Merced Pacheco, 26, was arrested on two counts of first-degree felony murder and one count of arson.
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The Orange County Sheriff’s Office said Minerva Rivera Gonzalez and Felix Morales died in the fire. Pacheco is the grandson of Gonzalez and the nephew of Morales and lived at the home with them, officials said.
Deputies said it’s not known when Pacheco will be brought to Central Florida to face charges.
No other details about his arrest have been released.
The fire broke out Feb. 19 in the 6000 block of Pompeii Road.
Crews battled smoke and heavy flames until they were finally able to contain the blaze.
Michael Schadow, who lives in the neighborhood where the fire took place, said it’s tragic to see what happened at his neighbor’s home.
“We always are out walking the neighborhood at night or early in the morning time, so it’s really shocking to find out if people have gone through and lost their lives,” Schadow said.
Schadow has lived there for decades and said the blaze was unlike anything he’d ever seen.
“I’ve been here 23 three years and never seen a fire like this,” Schadow said.
No other details were immediately available.
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