The Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office has officially identified the man and woman found dead in what authorities say was a murder-suicide at a Sewell home on Mother’s Day.
The Gloucester County medical examiner positively identified Daniel Steele, 59, of Sewell, and Michelle Whiting, 45, of Gloucester City, according to information released by the prosecutor’s office on May 19.
Police and fire departments responded at approximately 2:03 a.m. on May 11 to multiple reports of a house fire and loud explosion at the Tranquility Court home, according to the prosecutor’s office. It was in a cul de sac in the area of Tranquility Court and Orion Way, police said.
First responders found the residence fully engulfed in flames. The township fire department – with assistance from neighboring companies – extinguished the blaze, but investigators discovered the bodies of Steele and Whiting inside.
Steele – believed to be the home’s resident – was found in the living room with a handgun near his body. The county medical examiner ruled his death a suicide caused by fire. Whiting was located on a bed; police believe she suffered a fatal gunshot wound to the head before the fire. Her death has been ruled a homicide by the medical examiner.
An investigation revealed the presence of an accelerant and evidence that the home’s gas line had been tampered with, enabling unrestricted flow of natural gas into the home’s interior, according to the prosecutor. The explosion caused damage to homes next to and nearby, said Tom Gilbert, chief of detectives in the prosecutor’s office
Whiting has a son and two daughters, according to her friend, Tammy Ventura. The latter has organized a GoFundMe effort on behalf of the children.
“Her kids were her world,” Ventura said, noting Whiting’s daughters are in high school, and one of them will graduate this year.
GoFundMe funds will go directly to Whiting’s son, who will make sure his younger sisters have what they need. As of May 23, the page had raised $25,580 of its $40,000 goal.
The circumstances surrounding the fire and the deaths are being jointly investigated by the prosecutor’s office, township police and the county fire marshal’s office. Further information will be released as it becomes available.
Anyone with information on the case is encouraged to contact Det. Allen Williams, of the prosecutor’s office, at (856) 384-5622, or township police Det. Matthew Laudenslager at (856) 589-0330, ext. 1176. Information can also be e-mailed to the prosecutor’s office at tips@co.gloucester.nj.us.
