A man has been arrested for attempted murder and suspicion of arson in connection with a house fire that left a mother and daughter critically injured early Thursday morning.
Firefighters were called to a home on Featherhill Lane in Mira Mesa at 1:36 a.m. where they found a fire had broken out in an upstairs television room.
“As our crews entered, they encountered a lot of heat and some fire on the second floor,” said Maurice Luque, spokesperson for San Diego Fire Rescue Department.
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“A lot of the blinds and other items were melted from the heat but there wasn’t a lot of fire damage on the second story,” Luque added.
Upon arrival at the scene, firefighters found a man on the curb who told them there were two people still inside the home. The man had a slight injury to his foot, Luque said. San Diego police officers questioned the man about the fire.
Inside the home, crews found two women – a mother in her 60s and her daughter in her 40s – unresponsive in an upstairs bathroom. Crews performed CPR on the women at the scene.
Both victims were transported to local hospitals with critical injuries.
Officials say the victims are currently on life support. The daughter is not expected to survive her injuries sustained in the fire, officials said.
According to detectives, the house fire appeared suspicious in nature. The arson team was called to investigate the home and determined arson was likely the cause of the fire, officials said.
The home is now considered a crime scene.
The victim’s son, Thongsavath Sphabmixay, was detained by police on suspicion of arson and attempted murder. It is unclear if the son is the same man that firefighters found on the curb upon arrival at the home.
Officials say a witness saw the son leave the home shortly after the fire started. He returned to the house shortly thereafter.
“Some witness indication that he was there, left after the fire and then returned later,” said Lt. Jorge Duran with San Diego police. “We want to talk with him about why he left, where he went, what happened right before the fire started — those types of questions.”
A neighbor told NBC 7 a woman named Pamela Sphabmixay lives at the home on Featherhill Lane, though it is unclear if she was one of the victims critically injured in the fire.
