Police seeking clues into how man died outside northeast Fresno house party

Police are investigating the death of a man after a house party grew out of control in northeast Fresno, resulting in a fight involving more than 30 people.

The Fresno County coroner’s office said Monday that Guy Birrenkott, 57, of Friant, is the man who died. Fresno police say Birrenkott owned the house on the 8700 block of North Fuller Avenue. He was trying to shut down the party when violence broke out.

Police Chief Jerry Dyer said Monday that a cause of death won’t be known without the results of lab work that could take up to eight weeks.

Without that information, police have few clues to Birrenkott’s death.

“We don’t have any witnesses at this point. We’re trying to get people to come forward so we can have a better understanding of what transpired, including what happened to the victim,” Dyer said.

When police responded to multiple calls about the rowdy party around 2 a.m. Sunday they found Birrenkott on the lawn not breathing. Ambulances were called, but paramedics were unable to revive him.

Police also found a teenage boy bleeding from the head.

Police believe Birrenkott was involved in a verbal and physical altercation with one or more suspects.

Between 30 to 100 people, many of them minors, were at the home. Partygoers had broken windows and thrown bottles in the street. Neighbors also reported loud music, marijuana smoke and minors drinking.

On Monday morning, the door and front windows of the house were boarded up. A handful of tall prayer candles lined a walkway. On the driveway, about 200 votive candles were arranged to spell “LOVE GUY.”

This story was originally published January 11, 2016 at 5:01 PM with the headline "Police seeking clues into how man died outside northeast Fresno house party."