NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) - Newport News police are calling the four bodies found inside a fire damaged apartment a quadruple homicide.
The bodies appear to be those of an adult, a teenager and at least two children.
Police told WAVY.com a man and young child were missing from the home in the 14500 block of Old Courthouse Way. The 5-year-old boy was located sometime Friday with family members in South Carolina.
The boy's father, identified as 36-year-old John Moses Ragin, is believed to be somewhere in South Carolina.
South Carolina Police have issued a 'be on the lookout' alert for Ragin, who may be driving a black Saturn.
Crews were initially called to the scene Friday at around 2:30 p.m. for a fire. Chopper 10 flew over the scene. Video showed very little external damage, but heavy smoke damage inside the apartment at the Forrest Pines Apartment Homes in the Denbigh section of the city.
"It's very sad," said neighbor Farrah Dye. "Anytime children or anyone dies, it's sad, especially children that young."
Newport News Fire and Police worked late into the night looking for answers.
"It's scary, because we still don't know what happened," Dye added.
Police tell WAVY.com the teenage girl found in the apartment was badly burned; the woman and two children showed signs of trauma. Neighbors believe they were a mother and her young children.
"I can't even talk about it, it's just so sad," said one neighbor. "It's a tragedy."
"She seemed really nice," Dye said. "She was just a really nice lady. She always spoke to me and they haven't even been over here that long."
Investigators are still trying to determine causes of death and of the fire. Some residents think the fire started in the middle of the night.
A maintenance worker was reportedly first to smell smoke and alert police.
"I was walking my dog around one o'clock and I smelled smoke," neighbor Lauren Nelbach. "I was just thinking that it was from the swamp fires in Suffolk, so I didn't really think anything of it."
As investigators look for clues inside the house, other officers are looking for the victim's husband. Finding him could hold the key.
"I really hope that they catch who ever did it," Nelbach added. "No punishment, I think, is severe enough to kill a child. I couldn't imagine."
The bodies appear to be those of an adult, a teenager and at least two children.
Police told WAVY.com a man and young child were missing from the home in the 14500 block of Old Courthouse Way. The 5-year-old boy was located sometime Friday with family members in South Carolina.
The boy's father, identified as 36-year-old John Moses Ragin, is believed to be somewhere in South Carolina.
South Carolina Police have issued a 'be on the lookout' alert for Ragin, who may be driving a black Saturn.
Crews were initially called to the scene Friday at around 2:30 p.m. for a fire. Chopper 10 flew over the scene. Video showed very little external damage, but heavy smoke damage inside the apartment at the Forrest Pines Apartment Homes in the Denbigh section of the city.
"It's very sad," said neighbor Farrah Dye. "Anytime children or anyone dies, it's sad, especially children that young."
Newport News Fire and Police worked late into the night looking for answers.
"It's scary, because we still don't know what happened," Dye added.
Police tell WAVY.com the teenage girl found in the apartment was badly burned; the woman and two children showed signs of trauma. Neighbors believe they were a mother and her young children.
"I can't even talk about it, it's just so sad," said one neighbor. "It's a tragedy."
"She seemed really nice," Dye said. "She was just a really nice lady. She always spoke to me and they haven't even been over here that long."
Investigators are still trying to determine causes of death and of the fire. Some residents think the fire started in the middle of the night.
A maintenance worker was reportedly first to smell smoke and alert police.
"I was walking my dog around one o'clock and I smelled smoke," neighbor Lauren Nelbach. "I was just thinking that it was from the swamp fires in Suffolk, so I didn't really think anything of it."
As investigators look for clues inside the house, other officers are looking for the victim's husband. Finding him could hold the key.
"I really hope that they catch who ever did it," Nelbach added. "No punishment, I think, is severe enough to kill a child. I couldn't imagine."