Woman dies in Manzanilla arson attack, Chaguanas man held

A Chaguanas man is in police custody after he set fire to a Manzanilla house, killing a woman inside.

Police said Patricia Phillip, 35, was at the house of a friend on the Eastern Main Road, Manzanilla, at around 5.30 pm on Thursday when a man went to the house and set it on fire.

The woman's friend, who was sitting on the front steps of the house, saw the man with a gun, ran away and reported what happened to the Manzanilla police.

Police went to the house and found it on fire.

Mayaro fire officers extinguished the blaze and found Phillip's burnt remains inside.

Phillip's seven-year-old son was found nearby unharmed.

Crime scene investigators visited the area with homicide detectives.

Police said the 33-year-old man surrendered to Chaguanas police that evening.

Police from the Homicide Bureau of Investigations Region II are continuing enquiries.