Monday, September 1, 2008
The bodies of Jill Foster, 49, and an unidentified man were found in the ruins of Osbaston House in Maesbrook, Shropshire, days after Tuesday's blaze.
Kirstie Foster, 15, and her father Christopher, 50, remain unaccounted for.
Police specialist search teams found the remains of a third person on Sunday evening, a spokesperson said.
Detectives have said they are treating the case as a murder inquiry.
Post-mortem tests revealed Mrs Foster had been shot in the head prior to the blaze, which police said was started deliberately at about 0500 BST last Tuesday.
Tests were being carried out to establish whether a rifle, which was legitimately owned by Mr Foster, was the murder weapon.
Officers said the cause of death for the second body, believed to be a man, still had to be established, along with the dead person's identity.
Three horses and four dogs were also found dead in different parts of the house. All had been shot.
Det Supt Jon Groves, of West Mercia Police, said it would take "some time" to remove the third body from the scene "due to its position".
However, he said police were hoping to remove it from the house by the end of the day, with a post-mortem examination taking place later.
He said a forensic archaeologist would be visiting the site later in the morning to offer specialist advice on removing the body.
He thanked the local community for its support over the last week.
The Fosters were last seen the night before the blaze at a friend's barbecue and Kirstie had been online until about 0100 BST on the morning of the fire.
Mr Foster made his fortune developing insulation technology for oil rigs.
Court documents show that his company, Ulva Ltd, which had gone into liquidation, faced legal action from one of its suppliers for thousands of pounds and also owed about £800,000 in tax.
Kirstie wrote on her page on the social networking site Bebo that her horses were her "life" and posted dozens of pictures of her with the animals.
Friends of hers have been leaving messages on her page.
One friend, Chloe, wrote: "I can't belive that one of the bodys was your mam. RIP Jill Foster. I hope that the other body isnt your dad.
"An I hope they dont find any mor an your just havin a week somewer with your dad or sumink."
Another friend, Danielle, referred to Kirstie's horses - Scrumpy Jack, Breezy and Bramble - which were found dead in the outbuildings of the mansion.
She wrote: "I miss you soo much. My thorts are with you 24/7 and there are some points in the day i just wanna break down and cry.
"Life feels weird without you. Please be okay, otherwise I dunno wat ill doo. RIP Jill and Jack and Breezy and Bramble."
Her friend George wrote: "Plz b ok kirstie. We r all thinkin bowt u."
Another friend called Lucy added: "Forever in our hearts, once there forever in our lives."
Special prayers for the family were held on Sunday at Maesbrook Parish Church.
The Reverend Prebendary David Austerberry said the local community had been "bewildered and stunned" by what had happened.
Mr Groves said: "We have had a lot of support and understanding from members of the community and I would like to thank residents for that.
"The search and examination of the property is continuing and is still expected to take several days, possibly even weeks, and I am grateful for the continued support of those living in the area.
"Our thoughts remain with the families of Chris, Jill and Kirstie Foster and we will follow up every possible line of enquiry to establish what happened at Osbaston House in the early hours of Tuesday."
|Sources bbc.co.uk|
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