A fourth person has been confirmed to have died in an early morning fire in Long Branch in what may be a murder-suicide.

The home in Long Branch where 4 members of a family died in a suspicious fire
The home in Long Branch where 4 members of a family died in a suspicious fire (Chris Sheldon, Word On The Shore)
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At a press conference Wednesday morning, Monmouth County First Assistant prosecutor Marc LeMieux said a family of four died in a fire he called "not accidental" on Joline Avenue and were found to have other injuries that he would not specify.

“We are not ruling out the potential that there was a homicide and then an ultimate suicide, at this point, however I cannot confirm that at this time,” LeMieux said. “If it’s considered a homicide and a suicide, then it would be the person that was inside the home that would have committed that.

LeMieux identified the father who died as Lyndon "Shane" Beharry, an employee of the Long Branch Department of Public Works. The other victims are identified as 29-year-old Amanda Morris, 7-year-old Brandon Beharry and 4-year-old Brian Beharry.

A cousin of Lyndon "Shane" Beharry was alarmed by the suggestion that it could be a murder-suicide. "We were like brothers. We would go to the water parks with the kids on the weekends. I don't know how they could say this. They lived very happily," Ronald Beharry, who was also a neighbor, told the Asbury Park Press.

Beharry said that he last saw his cousin, who is originally from Trinidad, earlier Tuesday night and that everything was fine with the family when he left.

Flames broke out late Tuesday night at the two-story home in the home that was heavily engulfed in fire and smoke when the first firefighters arrived. However, there was little visible exterior damage to the home according to NJ.com. ABC 7 reports the fire was started in multiple places around the house.

"They couldn’t make their way past the smoke and fire," Long Branch Public Safety Director Jason Roebuck told CBS Philly. "They tried their hardest to make it up to the second floor where they thought there were some people.”


Route 36 was closed in both directions through the area between Rockwell Avenue and Liberty Street but reopened around 11 a.m. on Wednesday.

LeMieux did not know how the fire started and said the investigation continues.

 The Associated Press contributed to this report

 

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