Jun 18, 2007 9:40 pm US/Eastern
Police: No Babysitter Was With Larimer Children
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) ―
Pittsburgh Police confirm there was no babysitter with seven children in Larimer last week before a fire swept through the Winslow Street house.
Five-year-old Azquel Rankin and 6-year-old Andre Rankin died after flames raced through the house. Dezekia Holyfield, 3, Cedano Holyfield, 4, and Daekia Holyfield, 7, also perished.
KDKA's Marty Griffin reports investigators say the fire victims were locked in a room. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner says they died from smoke inhalation.
Two eight-year-old boys, Jevon Irwin and Huedon Chambliss, survived. Fire investigators believe the fire started by children playing with matches.
Shakita Mangham, the mother of the Holyfield children, along with her attorney, Jim Ecker, met with a homicide detective and an arson investigator at police headquarters on the North Side.
"She has been very cooperative and she just wants to get home with her other child," said Ecker. "As we speak now, there are no charges that I know of against her. Obviously that's something that could happen in the future. Only God can predict the future. Certainly right now the only thing I'm worried about is just getting her home and getting her rest. She's a very distraught young lady."
Furaha Love, the mother of the Rankin children, was questioned by police last week. So far, no charges have yet been filed in this case.
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