Man who died in house explosion in Cicero, Illinois, identified as suspect responsible for blast
Police in Cicero, Illinois, have identified the man who was killed in a house explosion last month, and said he's the one responsible for the blast.
Anthony Avila-Puebla, 31, was found dead in the remains of a two-story home that exploded and erupted in a raging fire the day after the explosion in the 2200 block of Central Avenue, Cicero police said Saturday.
He had not been identified publicly until Saturday.
Police said detectives have determined Avila-Puebla had a relationship with one of the people who lived in the home that exploded, and while that person was at a wedding on Feb. 15, he was seen on video parking his vehicle half a block from the house, and then carrying multiple jugs of a flammable liquid into the building, making at least three trips between his car and the home.
A short time later, the home exploded, and Avila-Puebla was not seen leaving the building before the blast.
While police said investigators have determined Avila-Puebla caused the explosion, a motive remains unclear.
The family of the bride and groom who lost their home in the explosion said Avila-Puebla, a relative of theirs, had gone to the wedding on Feb. 15, but took his mother's car and left, and hadn't been seen since. Avila-Puebla fathered the child of the bride's sister.
The explosion happened while Eleni Vrettos, who lived in the building, was away and busy getting married to her new husband, Tom. The debris left behind by the explosion and fire was composed of 40 years' worth of memories from her family home.
Vrettos grew up in the home, and had recently moved back in with her new husband to start their new life.
Initially, Vrettos' family told police and firefighters that everyone who lived in the building had been at the wedding, or otherwise outside of the building, at the time of the explosion. After Avila-Puebla's unidentified body was found the next day, the family said they thought he wasn't there at the time of the explosion.
"It's difficult. He had medication that he needed in the home too, so that's hard," Vrettos said two days after the explosion.
She said nothing was left from their home, which she also said was not insured. Two buildings next door also were damaged in the blast.
Vrettos' cats — Bambi, Tucker, Reya, Graham, Old Boy, and Grey — also were killed in the explosion.
The video above is from a previous report.
