In the early morning hours, a sense of unease settled over a quiet street in Vivian, Louisiana, when a family member arrived at a residence to find smoke billowing from within. Unable to get an answer at the door, authorities were summoned to the home shared by 50-year-old Carmen McCauley and her younger brother.
Firefighters from Fire District #8 entered the smoky residence and made a grim discovery in one of the bedrooms: the body of Carmen McCauley.
As investigators began to piece together the events of that tragic morning, an autopsy revealed a more sinister cause of death than the fire suggested. Carmen had been shot multiple times before the fire was set.
Suspicion quickly fell upon her brother, 45-year-old Chris McCauley, who was not at the home when officials first arrived. A search for him ended several hours later when he was found walking down a street in Shreveport. He was taken into custody and subsequently booked into the Caddo Correctional Center on charges of second-degree murder and aggravated arson.
According to authorities, the brother and sister had been living together in the house for several months, having moved in to care for their ailing mother who had recently passed away. Police records indicated no prior domestic calls to the residence involving the siblings.
