2 dead in ‘suspicious’ fire on Southwest Side, ‘accelerant involved’

Investigators suspect that a swift-moving fire on the Southwest Side Saturday morning that left two men dead in a home in Garfield Ridge was intentionally set, a source told the Chicago Sun-Times.

A 26-year-old man was found dead near a front window on the second floor of the home in the 5200 block of South Lorel, police and fire officials said.

“It looks as though he was trying to get out the window,” Chicago Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford said.

The second fatality — a 63-year-old man — was found dead on the first floor near a back door, Langford said.

Authorities hadn’t released either man’s name by Saturday evening.

“It looks like there was an accelerant involved,” a source said of the fire, which began around 9:30 a.m..

Chicago police and fire investigators, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Illinois State Fire Marshal are investigating, Langford said.

No working smoke detectors were found inside the house.

A number of children’s toys were found in the front yard of the home, but the child who apparently lives there was staying elsewhere Friday night, Langford said.