4 found dead inside burning Kearns home

KEARNS — Firefighters found four dead bodies inside a burning home near 5570 West and 5700 South about noon on Sunday.

Police believe the dead are 40-year-old Sharon Al-Shimary and her children Ashley, 9, Christopher, 7, and Heather, 2.

All the bodies were in an upstairs bedroom in the rear of the home. Two were on a bed and two were on the floor, said Salt Lake County Sheriff's Lt. Paul Jaroscak.

Police officials said the fire was suspicious and the deaths are being investigated as homicides.

The bedroom and its floor were the only part of the house damaged by flames.

The Al-Shimary family had lived in the home for about eight months, according to neighbors who milled about outside the home as detectives and investigators processed the scene.

The children's father, Ahmed Al-Shimary, did not live at the home but was married to their mother.

According to Sharon Al-Shimary's brother, Bruce Harper, the pair was going through divorce proceedings.

Ahmed Al-Shimary did not come to scene in the hours following the accident, but detectives were easily able to find him and talk with him, Jaroscak said.

By about 5 p.m. Sunday, police had not released cause-of-death information about the family. They also declined to say whether the bodies had suffered any obvious injuries or whether weapons were found in the home.

The doors to the home were locked when firefighters arrived, Jaroscak said.

By about 4 p.m., the sheriff's office had obtained a search warrant and had begun the process of videotaping the home and collecting evidence.

The investigation was expected to last until sometime Monday morning, Jaroscak said.

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