House Fire Kills Josh Powell and 2 Kids, Family of Missing Woman

Josh Powell, husband of missing Utah woman, set fire to his home killing his two young boys and himself.

Josh Powell’s note was simple and short, a farewell to the world after two years of being scrutinized in the media, hammered by police and questioned by judges, prosecutors and social workers, living his life under a microscope since the day his wife vanished. 

"I'm sorry, goodbye" was the only thing Powell said in an email to his attorney minutes before he set his house on fire, killing himself and his two young children, days after he was denied custody and ordered to undergo a psycho-sexual evaluation.
A social worker brought the two boys to Josh Powell’s home Sunday for what was to be a supervised visit. They rushed toward the home, leaving the social worker behind. By the time she got to the door, Powell had let his sons in but locked her out, Graham Fire and Rescue Chief Gary Franz told The Associated Press. 


The social worker called her supervisors to report that she could smell gas. Moments later, the home burst into flames, igniting an inferno that neighbors said rattled their houses. 

Susan Powell, a pretty 28-year-old mother of two, was reported missing Dec. 7, 2009, after she failed to show up for her stockbroker job in Utah.

Authorities in the couple’s hometown of West Valley City, about 10 miles outside Salt Lake City, quickly turned their attention to Josh Powell. He’s been the only “person of interest” in the case, but had repeatedly denied any involvement in her disappearance.

“I would never even hurt her,” a tearful, red-eyed Josh Powell told CBS’ Early Show in August. “People who know me know that I could never hurt Susan.”

About a month later, police spent 12 days in the remote central Utah desert looking for clues, and Josh Powell and his father, Steven, quickly disappeared from the limelight. The search area around Topaz Mountain, a popular spot for rock and gem hunters, was about 30 miles south of where Josh told police he went camping with his two children in the hours before his wife’s disappearance — his steadfast alibi.

Josh Powell has been the only named person of interest in connection with her disappearance.

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Josh Powell and 2 sons killed in house explosion

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sourced by Emily Sutherlin