Investigators in Massachusetts say a Worcester firefighter who died while battling a blaze late last year was the victim of homicide, further alleging a former tenant of the building deliberately started the fire.
According to WCVB, 36-year-old Christopher Roy was one of the firefighters involved in the December 6 response to the fire at a residential building on Lowell Street.
Fire investigators reportedly determined the fire was intentionally ignited in the building’s basement.
According to a statement this week from Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early, a grand jury found sufficient evidence to charge 21-year-old Momoh Kamara with criminal counts including murder in the second degree, arson, armed burglary, and malicious destruction of a motor vehicle.
Roy was trapped on the second floor of the building on the day of the fire and an updated death certificate concludes he was the “victim of fire set by other(s),” as Metro West Daily News reported.
Kamara was arrested on Friday and pleaded not guilty during an arraignment hearing in Worcester Superior Court. As of the latest reports available, he remained behind bars without bail.
“The indictment was the result of a long and intense investigation that started immediately after Firefighter Roy’s death and is ongoing,” Early explained.
Roy, who had been with the department for more than two years and worked with Webster Square Station Ladder 4, is survived by a 9-year-old daughter he reportedly raised as a single father.
Professional Firefighters of Massachusetts President Rich MacKinnon said that the organization’s “focus continues to be on the safety and well-being of Chris’ daughter, Ava, and the Roy family.”
[Featured image: Christopher Roy, Worcester Fire Department/Momoh Kamara, WCVB video screenshot]
