LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. – A woman's body was found in a burning car parked next to subdivision clubhouse and playground in Lawrenceville and the fire has been ruled as arson, officials said Tuesday.
The victim has not been identified, and the car fire has been ruled an arson, said Lawrenceville Police Lt. Jake Parker.
Parker said detectives have located the owner of the car, who lives in Gwinnett County and told them that someone else in the family--not the person who was found dead--had been using the car. Police did not know, as of Tuesday afternoon, if the person found dead had borrowed the car from the family member.
"No cause of death has been determined yet and we don't know the identity of the person," Parker said.
Police said the burning car was discovered around 3:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Springlake Cove subdivision clubhouse and playground, on Springbottom Drive in Lawrenceville. Nearby residents called 911 to report “loud popping sounds” and flames.
Two witnesses who called 911 reported hearing people screaming, along with what sounded like loud explosions.
"I'm not sure if anyone is inside the car right now, but if they are, they are deceased," one 911 caller told dispatchers.
The car fire was fully engulfed when crews arrived. Firefighters discovered the body inside the car after they put out the fire.
Witnesses told police they didn't see anyone near the scene. Right now, police are working with the neighborhood homeowner's association to determine if any surveillance videos might have captured the car fire.
The car, a Honda, was not stolen.
There is now a $10,000 reward for information related to the arson case.
