The body of a South Lake Tahoe man was discovered in the downstairs bathroom of a Park Avenue house after a late-night fire charred the front of the residence.
Authorities initially treated the fire as murder by arson after a gas can was found on the porch but later ruled the unknown cause as "suspicious."
The man's body was discovered during a sweep of the two-story residence.
His name will not be released until next of kin is notified.
A woman authorities referred to as the man's ex-girlfriend was brought in for questioning but was not arrested as of 4:15 p.m., said South Lake Tahoe police Sgt. Brian Williams.
"We're definitely comfortable with the origin of the fire but the cause is suspicious," said South Lake Tahoe Fire Capt. Rick Myers.
Firefighters received a call of flames and heavy smoke at 861 Park Ave. at 12:15 a.m. Thursday. Fire spread quickly from the porch to the front of the house and burst inside through three street-facing windows, authorities said.
A tall pine tree was scorched and the front end of a white Suburban melted.
Scott Douglass, battalion chief for the South Lake Tahoe Fire Department, said it took less than five minutes to extinguish visible flames.
"If there could be a run-of-the-mill structure fire, this is it," Douglass said.
A sweep by inspecting firefighters found the man on the floor and his pet rabbit dead in a cage. Both were in the bathroom.
Neighbors and friends said the man, a real estate agent, was well liked. He recently celebrated his birthday with friends, a neighbor said.
"At this point it's still under investigation," Myers added. "We have to do some more interviews."
An autopsy is scheduled for this morning.
Neighbor Sher Eymann witnessed the fire from her friend's house.
"It was horrible. All the neighbors were out," she said. "We were out here until 4 in the morning."
The last fatal house fire in South Lake Tahoe was 19 years ago when a flames caught a house on Lakeview Drive and killed one person, Myers said.
Contact William Ferchland at wferchland@tahoedailytribune.com
