Fire investigators say they suspect faulty wiring may have caused a kitchen fire at the former of home of Casey and Sandy Parsons, but investigators will work with a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives lab for confirmation.
A small fire in the kitchen at 218 Miller Chapel Road was reported Wednesday morning. It was that same house where the Parsonses lived with their children, including their adopted daughter, Erica Lynn Parsons. Erica was reported missing more than two months ago by Sandy and Casey’s biological son, James Parsons.
James told Rowan investigators his teenaged sister had not been seen or heard from in two years. His visit with local law enforcement prompted an investigation into Erica’s disappearance that has since involved the FBI and State Bureau of Investigations.
The couple were evicted from the home by Sandy Parsons’ father, William Parsons and his wife, Janet, both of whom own the property.
William Parsons was at the home Wednesday making repairs and turned the electricity back on. He told fire officials he went outside and returned to see the microwave on fire. The fire spread beyond the microwave, but was contained before causing extensive damage.
Fire investigator Aaron Youngblood said Thursday the microwave was sent to the ATF to “verify the microwave is not or is the cause of origin. They can reconstruct to determine if there was a malfunction.”
Youngblood said fire investigators suspect the cause of the fire was electrical wiring.
“We are hoping ATF will bring in an electrical engineer who does forensics work who could analyze the point of origin,” he said.
The wiring was done during a “self-remodel,” he said, but the work was not performed by William Parsons. Youngblood confirmed the remodeling was done by the previous tenants, Casey and Sandy Parsons.
The Parsonses have been under scrutiny since Erica Parsons was reported missing. They say they let Erica go to live with a woman they knew as her biological grandmother, Irene Goodman. Rowan investigators and other family members have said Goodman does not exist.
See more in Friday’s Post.