Tearful tributes to sisters killed in fire as police hold three murder suspects
THREE men have been arrested on suspicion of murder after two sisters were killed in a house fire in the early hours.
The women, named locally as Masooma Fatima, 24, and Aneesa Shah, 21, died after intense flames gutted the first floor of their family home.
Four other people, including their mother Nadia Shah, escaped and were taken to hospital after the blaze in a long cul- de- sac in Wolverhampton.
It is home to several members of the same extended family of Pakistani descent and, last night, around a dozen tearful relatives held a vigil outside the address.
One family member stressed the victims ‘get on with everybody around here’ and another said the sisters were ‘close’ and their mother’s ‘best friends’.
The relative added: ‘They were lovely, sweet and kind – just two lovely girls.’ The victims worked alongside each other in customer service for water purification firm Culligan UK.
A tearful colleague said: ‘They were such lovely, beautiful people. We’re devastated.’
One neighbour added: ‘I tried to help but I couldn’t get near. By that point the flames were leaping out of the house about as far as the length of my driveway.’
West Midlands Police said the three suspects were known to the victims. Officers were continuing to work with the fire service to find out how the flames broke out at the end-of-terrace house just before 2am on Saturday.
Yesterday, forensic officers worked alongside a fire service accelerant detection dog. Firstfloor bedrooms at both the front and rear appeared to be gutted.
West Midlands Fire Service said firefighters in breathing apparatus had gone into the house and found two bodies inside.
Police said three men aged 19, 22, and 46 have been arrested.