Foul play ruled out Fifty-year-old man found dead in apartment
Allendria Brunjes News Staff
Although foul play and criminal activity have been ruled out, the investigation continues after a man died in a four-plex fire on 100 Avenue last Monday.
Fifty-year-old Robert Gary Prohl was found deceased in a basement unit of the building after a fire filled the unit with smoke.
The cause of the fire and medical cause of death have yet to be determined.
Westlock RCMP Staff Sgt. Bryan Clayton said the fire and death were deemed suspicious at first because the cause of either was not immediately apparent.
"An autopsy has since been performed and the manner of death did not involve any criminal act or foul play," he said in a press release, noting that the death was found to be caused accidentally by the deceased.
Clayton said that at approximately 10:30 p.m. on March 1, residents of the building called 911 after smelling smoke that came from one of the units.
The Westlock Fire Department arrived on scene to find the unit filled with smoke. Clayton said flames were not reported, and firefighters found Prohl's body inside.
He added that there was no structural damage to the building and the damages were relatively minor.
The Alberta Emergency Management Agency, RCMP Major Crimes Unit, RCMP Forensic Identification Section and Provincial Chief Medical Examiner's office assisted the local RCMP and fire department with the investigation.
The six occupants of the other units in the building were evacuated to a local hotel while the investigation continued. Clayton said that they returned home March 3 when the building was no longer a potential crime scene.
Anyone with information that will aid the police in their investigation should call the Westlock RCMP detachment at 780-349-4491 or CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
