2 fires reported at one Norcross house within 16 hours

Gwinnett County arson investigators are trying to find out who may have had a dispute with a Norcross family that would have led someone to twice torch the house on Bailey Drive.

The family who lived there, identified as Nguyen in public records, was out of town when both fires started and they have not returned to the city, according to Capt. Tommy Rutledge, spokesman for Gwinnett County Fire & Emergency Services.

Attempts to reach the family and relatives were not successful.

The first fire was discovered when police responded around 9 a.m. Tuesday when a relative checking the house reported a burglary. By the time, police officers arrived, the fire had “burned itself out” and only some contents in that room were damaged.

A call from a neighbor reporting a fully involved fire at the split-level wood frame house came in just before 1 a.m. Wednesday. The flames were so intense, firefighters couldn’t go inside and the siding on the house next door melted, Rutledge said.

“It’s a complete loss,” Rutledge said. “Just a shell is standing on the left side of the house.”

Investigators looking at burn patterns and an arson dog sniffing for accelerants were at the scene Wednesday morning. They finished their work around noon.

“The cause of the fire is currently under investigation as an act of arson,” Rutledge said.

Investigators are somewhat certain the same person or people set both.

A $10,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to a conviction. People with information should call the Gwinnett Fire Arson and Explosives Section at 678-518-4890 or the Georgia Arson Control Hot Line at 1-800-282-5804.