MORENO VALLEY: Body found inside charred vehicle, officials confirm
MORENO VALLEY – Details are still emerging but sheriff’s officials have confirmed they are investigating after firefighters battling a car blaze discovered the body of a victim inside the charred remains of the car.
The charred vehicle and body were found near the March Air Reserve Base, at the end of the road adjacent to the Air Museum. John Strangis photo
The burning car and body were found in the area of March Air Reserve Base, at the end of the road adjacent to the Air Museum, at 22250 Van Buren Boulevard in Moreno Valley.
The name of the victim has not been released; pending identification, further investigation and notification of the victim’s family.
The incident began Sunday, May 21, about 11:30 p.m., when Cal Fire/Riverside County firefighters responded to reports of a car fire.
When they arrived, firefighters reported finding a car fully engulfed in flames. Firefighters immediately began to battle the fire and quickly had the blaze knocked down.
While firefighters were beginning to conduct overhaul and mop up operations, witnesses at the scene reported seeing them use a saw to cut open the trunk of the vehicle.
A short time later, officials at the scene summoned deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Moreno Valley Police Station to the scene after they reported discovering the body in the burnt-out vehicle.
Officials have not yet specified where inside the vehicle the body was discovered; however, in two separate Tweets, the Sheriff’s Media Information Bureau confirmed that they were conducting “an active death investigation…regarding a body located inside a burned vehicle off of Van Buren & 215.”
Sheriffs officials have not yet announced if they are conducting a death or a homicide investigation or released any information about the make or model of the destroyed vehicle, although some media outlets are reporting that the vehicle was a BMW.
The department is expected to be releasing additional information about their investigation at a later time.
Anyone with information about this investigation should contact officials at the Moreno Valley Police Department at (951) 486-6700 or after hours at (951) 776-1099. Callers can remain anonymous. Citizens may also submit a tip using the Sheriff’s CrimeTips online form.
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Trevor Montgomery runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News and Anza Valley Outlook and also writes for Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg and breaking his back in an off-duty accident.
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 26 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 12 – soon to be 13 – grandchildren.