Clovis house fire victim was man in his 70s. Sheriff investigating possible arson

Investigators were on the scene of a fatal fire Tuesday in the Tarpey Village area that’s being treated as suspicious, according to the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.

The house was in the 4500 block of North Argyle Avenue near Gettysburg and Sunnyside avenues, where sheriff’s and Fresno County fire investigators were on scene.

A neighbor across the street getting ready for work about 5:30 a.m. saw the smoke coming from the home and kicked in the door to try to help the victim, who was a man in his 70s, according to Tony Botti with the sheriff’s office.

Firefighters arrived shortly after and checked the man while fighting the blaze, but the man was pronounced dead at the scene, Botti said. The victim had injuries inconsistent with a fire so investigators were called in, he said.

Botti would not describe the extent of the injuries and stopped short of calling the scene a homicide investigation but said authorities were treating the scene as a potential arson.

This story was originally published February 8, 2022 at 8:37 AM.

Thaddeus Miller

Merced Sun-Star

559-441-6015

Reporter Thaddeus Miller has covered cities in the central San Joaquin Valley since 2010, writing about everything from breaking news to government and police accountability. A native of Fresno, he joined The Fresno Bee in 2019 after time in Merced and Los Banos.