|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
More details have surfaced about last year’s fire at Avenue Liquor and the deaths of its two shopkeepers, one of whom was found with chains around his wrists.
The 25-page fire investigation report from the Redwood City Fire Department about the incident on Nov. 3, 2025 reveals why investigators determined longtime store manager, Benigno “Benny” Nuguid Pare, intentionally started the fire.
“Based on the totality of physical evidence, fire patterns and analytical findings,” Redwood City Fire Investigator S. Daniel Shugart stated in the report, “It is my professional opinion that the fire originated within the loft area and was intentionally set using a piloted ignition source, likely an open flame such as a lighter and in conjunction with an ignitable liquid.”
The report lists five California Penal Code violations related to “willful” and “malicious” arson.
Fire Capt. Ryan Coy found the back door leading to the alleyway blocked by barricade brackets and a 4-foot-long block of wood, the report said. Crews also found a “small, ‘A’-frame ladder” leading to an area above the walk-in freezer and a storage space, later referred to as a “loft” and “sleeping area” in the report, located at the rear of the store.
The owner of the liquor store, Gurmeet Singh, told Redwood City police that he was aware the two men would occasionally stay overnight inside the shop, according to the report. There was no set schedule for when they stayed, and he was not always notified when they were present, the report said.
In the loft, which consisted of wooden beams and sheets of plywood, investigators recovered personal items including wallets, foreign identification cards, multiple cell phones, a passport, mail, money and various articles of clothing “consistent with people living or staying in that space,” the report stated.
The timeline
Video surveillance from inside the liquor store at 2147 Roosevelt Ave. at about 4:20 the morning of the fire shows an individual matching Pare’s description leaving the store and reentering at about 4:28 a.m., according to the report. The interior video aligns with exterior video surveillance from Little Caesars, another tenant of the Roosevelt Shopping Center strip mall, where Pare’s white van was parked.
At about 5:13 a.m., the interior video captured the initial ignition of the fire, a large flash in the area behind the walk-in refrigerator, according to the report. Approximately 30 seconds later, smoke increased rapidly and blocked out video visibility.
“This type of video surveillance,” the report stated, “which captures an abnormally rapid intensification almost like an explosion would be consistent and further verify the use of an ignitable liquid.”
Just after 5:30 a.m., fire crews arrived at Avenue Liquor and forced entry, the report said. The crews encountered a combination cable and numerical lock on the inside of the doors and forced entry again at the employee-only area at the back of the building.
The front of the store exhibited limited fire damage, with only minor smoke staining observed near the ceiling and scattered throughout the store area, according to the report.
The bodies
While the fire team was extinguishing smoldering debris in the loft area, they discovered two bodies, which could not be immediately identified, the report said.
The body located closest to the entry point was positioned face down, with the head oriented toward the front of the store and the feet toward the rear. A hot plate was identified in close proximity to the body but was found to be unplugged.
Later identified as Pare, his entire body showed signs of fourth-degree burns, with his calf area to feet badly burned to the bone with no remaining muscle tissue, investigators said. As the body was rolled over, his hands were found to be bound with metal chains, secured in a figure-eight configuration and locked together with a key lock, though the chains around his left wrist were more loosely looped.
Authorities said it remains undetermined whether Pare had been restrained at the feet prior to or during the fire because cloth, leather or rope would likely have been entirely consumed by the fire.
A white lighter with blackened charring near the head was located within the burned cloth-like materials near Pare’s body. The material emitted a distinct odor consistent with gasoline, the report stated. Several other lighters, similar to those stocked at the front counter of the store, were also recovered near his body.
Anil Kumar Sharma, 25, the other shopkeeper, was found dead farther from the loft entry point, with his head oriented toward the front of the store and his feet toward the rear, according to the report. His lower extremities exhibited more extensive fire damage than the upper body, with fourth-degree burns noted on the right leg, and his final resting place on his left side.
At the back corner of the loft, investigators documented about half a dozen one-gallon, clear plastic jugs, each uncapped and observed to contain a yellow-colored liquid, the report stated.
An arson detection device found trace levels of hydrocarbons and ignitable liquids inside the storage area beneath the loft and within a small debris pile adjacent to the ladder, suggesting to investigators that the fire was intentional.
In the small debris pile was a backpack and an unplugged space heater, which melted together. Investigators observed a distinct “V”-shaped burn pattern, which was visible on the left side of the large metal refrigerator.
At the base of the “V” pattern was what investigators called “a small makeshift table” constructed of several pieces of wood, on which a burn pile of combustible materials was located.
Several cases of Mountain Dew, Squirt and Gatorade plastic bottles were positioned near the debris pile. The bottles remained intact, but exhibited thermal deformation near their necks, which the report said indicated exposure to elevated heat levels from above. The fact that lower portions and sides of the plastic bottles were not deformed indicated to investigators that temperatures near the ground level were comparatively cooler.
A candle was located in the loft area close to Pare’s lower extremities, though investigators could not determine whether it was lit at the time of ignition, according to the report. Investigators believe the fire started in the loft, close to Pare’s body.
The total property damage caused by the fire is estimated at approximately $500,000, affecting all businesses in the strip mall, the report said. Nearby businesses Oh Baby Sushi and Big Brother Burgers sustained some smoke and water damage, as well as loss of product and loss of revenue due to closures related to the fire and investigation.
The report said Singh was told not to enter the fire scene when he arrived, but he refused and entered the perimeter control area, appearing “extremely anxious” and “persistently inquiring” about the specific items or areas that had been burning.
Fire Capt. Jason Allen Fox described his interaction with Singh in the report as “unlike any he had experienced in his over 30-year career.” Singh was detained and was unable to be contacted by investigators by the time the report was published.
The case remains active. Anyone with information related to this incident is encouraged to contact the Redwood City Police Department at (650) 780-7100.
