BUCYRUS — Two people found dead at the scene of Monday morning’s fire in northeastern rural Miami County earlier this week were killed by gunshots. The autopsies revealed that the victims had been shot, Miami County Undersheriff Wayne Minckley said this morning. There is no official identification of the victims, but Minckley said the sheriff’s office hasn’t found the owners of the house that was destroyed. Kansas City television stations have identified the owners as Mike Jerden, a drywall business operator, and Sandy Jerden, who worked at the deli counter at an Overland Park Price Chopper. Early Monday morning, firefighters arrived in the 3400 block of West 239th Street east of Bucyrus, the house, barn and a vehicle were engulfed in flames. Minckley said that their efforts were complicated by ammunition exploding inside the residence and a barn. Investigators with the sheriff’s office and state fire marshal’s office are trying to determine how the fires started, he said.
Thursday, June 11, 11 a.m.
