MONTCALM COUNTY, Mich.– Tests reveal the identity of the person found in ashes of a barn fire that occurred on October 15.
According to the Montcalm County Sheriff, DNA results have confirmed that Sidney Joseph Perry, 30, was the one who perished in the blaze. The police suspected that it might be Perry who died in the fire, because he was seen in the area around the barn a few hours before the fire started.
The Sheridan Fire Department originally responded to a fire on M-66 near Sessions road at 2:43 a.m. on October 15. When they found a skeleton in the rubble around 7:00 a.m. the fire department called detectives to the scene.
Perry was a local homeless man who would frequently stay in vacant buildings in the Sheridan area. Several years ago, Perry had family who lived in the house next to the barn. The house is now owned by Phebe Wilson, the mother of Michigan State Senator Judy Emmons.
Police are still investigating the cause of the fire.
