Investigators dig deeper after finding 'suspicious wounds' on fire victim's body, authorities say

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Houston police say their homicide division is now investigating a fatal fire in the Willowbend area of southwest Houston.

The victim, identified by family as 65-year-old David Lind, was found dead in his bedroom at 4813 Kinglet Street.

Tony Brown, district chief for the Houston Fire Department, says they were called to the house fire around 5:15 a.m. on March 1.

Brown says two men, described as David's housemates, had already escaped when they arrived.

"We had two residents that self-escaped. They were already on the exterior. They were telling us that there was one person trapped inside," said Brown.

ORIGINAL REPORT: Man killed in southwest Houston house fire, HFD confirms

Brown says firefighters put out the fire quickly and then went inside the house to search for Lind.

Lind's family says he was found in his bedroom with his pet Chihuahua, who also passed.

Neighbors and family say Lind was kind, caring, and always willing to help.

"Always there for you if you needed him," said his daughter Joy Cauthen. "He was a great dad. He was a great person."

Speaking with ABC13 by phone from her home in Cleveland, Texas, Cauthen says the fire took her father and destroyed her family home.

"I walked around that fire truck and turned into my husband and cried. It was devastating," said Cauthen.

Cauthen's grandparents bought the home in the 60s, where they raised her father, his sister, and brother.

"He grew up in that home. It's devastating that he also lost his life in that home," said Cauthen.

Eventually, the home was passed down to Lind and his sister. The two lived there at different times. Cauthen also lived in the residence in southwest Houston while she and her husband were saving money.

"It's just always been there. It's always been a place I knew I could go," said Cauthen.

The few items she could salvage from the ashes include old photos of her father as a baby and her grandparents.

Houston Police say they're involved because suspicious wounds were found on Lind's body.

The Houston Fire Department is still working to determine how the fire started.

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