GROTON – The City of Groton Police Department has officially identified a woman who died in a fire at the Branford Manor apartment complex earlier this week.
Firefighters found the apartment engulfed in flames when they arrived around 9 p.m. on Wednesday, December 19th. The intense heat and smoke prevented them from entering the building. They found the body of a woman after the fire was contained.
On Sunday afternoon, police officially identified the deceased as 31-year-old Anna Berroa of 146 Branford Avenue, Groton. Friends and relatives had previously said she was the woman who died in the fire, but investigators had not confirmed the identity until today. The Office of the State Medical Examiner conducted a post-mortem examination on the 20th, which included the use of dental records to positively identify Berroa. The OCME determined the cause of death to be smoke inhalation from the fire.
Ana’s boyfriend previously told FOX 61’s Matt Caron that the troubled mother of two locked herself inside the apartment and proceeded to throw the Christmas tree out the window — before setting the apartment on fire. The children were luckily saved.
Police say the cause and origin of the fire is still being investigated by the State Fire Marshall and local detectives.