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In the interest of speed and timeliness, this story is fed directly from the Associated Press newswire and may contain spelling or grammatical errors.
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Woman found burned to death behind San Jose market
Thursday April 17, 2003
SAN JOSE, Calif. San Jose police are seeking the public's help
in identifying a woman whose charred remains were discovered near a
trash bin behind a supermarket.
Firefighters found the woman after a person dropping off
donations at a charity truck Tuesday night reported what looked
like burning debris or a campfire behind a Safeway store, said San
Jose police Sgt. Steve Dixon.
``As they started to put it out, they saw it was a body,'' Dixon
said. ``The woman was on fire.''
Dixon said the woman was believed to be a transient between 40
and 60 years old. Homeless people often camp out near markets for
warmth, protection, shopping carts to store belongings, and
handouts from sympathetic shoppers, he said.
Authorities have not yet determined how the fire started. There
was no indication that the woman tried to light a campfire to keep
warm, but she may have accidentally ignited her bedding with a
cigarette, Dixon said.
The body was wrapped in a sheet, blanket and plastic tarp, and
firefighters found cigarettes nearby, Dixon said.
Police are treating the death as suspicious and are awaiting
autopsy results from the county coroner.
(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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