NHP The Moscow Police Department are investigating the death of a pregnant Moscow woman in a June 24 apartment fire as a homicide.

The fire, which took place around 7:50 a.m. at 904 Vandal Drive, took the life of 28-year-old Sarah Parks, a teacher at the Moscow Charter School. Firefighters found the woman’s body in the burned-out duplex in which she and her husband resided. On Friday, Moscow police obtained autopsy reports that indicated Parks’ death was prior to the start of the fire, said Lt. Paul Kwiatkowski of the Moscow Police Department. The Latah County Major Crime Team has taken over the case, he said. “The woman was found after the fire department extinguished the fire,” Kwiatkowski said. “Her body was found and at that time, no one else was found in the apartment. Right now it’s considered a crime scene.” The apartment underwent extensive damage, but no dollar amount has been established, he said. Joe Williams, fire marshal for the Moscow Volunteer Fire Department, said 32 volunteers, two fire trucks, an ambulance, a supporting unit and a utility vehicle responded. To proceed with the investigation, the fire department asked for assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said Idaho State Fire Marshal Mark Larson.

Authorities have spoken with a number of people, but no one has been named a suspect. “(Parks’ husband) came in and we spoke with him,” Kwiatkowski said. “He’s been cooperative. We haven’t ruled anyone out as a suspect, but we’re not identifying anyone as a suspect at this time.” Kwiatkowski said the husband reported working out at the gym during the fire. “We’re still investigating the scene and evaluating the information we’ve received, and we’ll continue to investigate in a deliberate manner to make sure we didn’t miss anything,” he said. Parks worked as a third grade teacher for four years at MCS.

“She was an excellent teacher," said Christian Wuthrich, director of the MCS school board. “Both her students and staff appreciated her work. She also worked over the summer as a teacher who works with at-risk students. She had an excellent track record and it’ll be a loss to the school.” Wuthrich said a memorial will be held at the Moscow Church of the Nazarene at 3 p.m. today.

Anyone with information can contact the Moscow Police Department at 208-883-7067.