YUMA, AZ (AZFamily) — Police have released new details in the deadly house fire that claimed two lives in Yuma earlier this summer, confirming the case was a murder-suicide.

On the night of May 31, firefighters responded to a burning home near 10th Avenue and S. 16th Street (U.S. 95). Crews pulled 32-year-old Dustin Trease and 31-year-old Leticia Villareal from the house, both of whom died at the scene.

Investigators now say Trease shot and killed Villareal before setting the home on fire and taking his own life. Yuma Police spokesperson Hayato Johnson said Villareal had been shot several times, including in her back.

“It appeared everything was on her back, so either she was trying to get away or he snuck up behind her,” Johnson said.

Police found more than a dozen firearms inside

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