Mena police and fire officials have asked Arkansas State Police to help investigate after they found the body of a woman inside a house fire on Saturday afternoon.
The Mena Fire Department responded to a residential fire at around 1 p.m. Saturday, according to a news release from state police. The fire was at 407 First St. in north-central Mena, about 13 miles east of the Oklahoma state line.
Authorities initially believed that the house was unoccupied and had no utility connections, but they discovered the body while attempting to gain control of the fire.
The victim’s name wasn’t immediately released.
Special agents with the state police Criminal Investigation Division are trying to determine whether there is a connection between the fire and the disappearance of a woman in the same neighborhood, authorities said.
The investigation is ongoing. The body was sent to the state Crime Laboratory for autopsy.