Camden authorities seek clues in fire that killed two teenagers

The investigation into the deaths of two Camden teenagers over the summer in a suspicious rowhouse fire has their parents frustrated and authorities seeking witnesses.

The Camden County Prosecutor's Office has offered a $1,000 reward for information to help determine what happened the morning of June 29, when Kenny Holmes Jr. and his girlfriend, Qua'Nyrah Houston, were killed.

Authorities believe the Liberty Park fire was arson.

The teens were both 15, popular students, and athletes with big dreams: He wanted to be a pilot, she a lawyer.

Instead, they died of smoke inhalation, apparently trying to escape from the rowhouse in the 1000 block of Thurman Street where Holmes lived. Their bodies were found side by side near the front door.

"When I lost my son, it was like I lost everything," the elder Kenny Holmes said during a recent interview in which he described trying to give his son the life he never had. "I raised him the way I wanted to be raised."

The parents of both teens said they suspected arson. Seeking answers since June, they have pieced together a puzzle that includes domestic discord and threats.

"I regret not being there. I regret being me," said Holmes, now living with a relative in Camden. He was in jail on drug charges the day his son died. "I feel 100 percent responsible, like I let him down."

Holmes wants to know what happened that morning, he said. "I know it wasn't an accident."

Police records confirm that a feud had been brewing for more than a week. Law enforcement sources also confirmed that a surveillance video showed a suspicious person in the area when the fire erupted.

Additionally, there is evidence of an accelerant that may have been poured on the porch and possibly just inside the front door, law enforcement sources said. They are waiting for a lab analysis before ruling whether the fire was arson or accidental.

Kenny Holmes Jr., a basketball player, finished his freshman year at Camden High School at the top of his class. Houston played ball and ran track at Woodrow Wilson High School. Her grades were good, and she read law books borrowed from the library.

Holmes lived with his father in the rowhouse on Thurman. The elder Holmes' girlfriend had been living there, as well. One day, he said, he brought home another girlfriend, eventually leading to an intimate relationship among the three adults.

According to a police report, on June 20, nine days before the fire, police were sent to investigate a domestic dispute at the rowhouse. The newer girlfriend told authorities she had walked in on Holmes having sex with his other girlfriend. She needed $10 to get to work, and Holmes allegedly told her to take it from his pants, which she did.

Before she left, the girlfriend told police, Holmes grabbed a silvered handgun, put it to her head, and told her he would kill her if she did not leave him alone, according to the report.

The girlfriend called police and got a restraining order, and a warrant was put out for Holmes' arrest. Police said she also admitted slashing the tires of Holmes' car.

On June 28, police spotted Holmes on Mount Ephraim Avenue. They arrested him on assault charges and searched his house for the weapon, authorities said. Although police did not find a gun, they did find 61 baggies of suspected crack cocaine.

In the meantime, the girlfriend told authorities she had lied. She was jealous that Holmes and the other woman were having sex without her, authorities said. Holmes, however, remained in jail on drug charges.

About midnight, going into the early hours of June 29, the newer girlfriend arrived to sleep at the rowhouse, authorities said. Kenny Holmes Jr. told her to leave because he was angry that she had had his father locked up, relatives said. The other girlfriend at that time was in a second-floor bedroom, police said.

The son usually slept in another second-floor bedroom, relatives said. That night, his girlfriend sneaked out of her house about 1 a.m. to see him, and the two fell asleep in the living room.

The fire started about 5 a.m.

A 911 caller reported the fire and told dispatchers to save the boy who slept on the second floor, relatives said.

Holmes Jr. and Houston may have been overcome by smoke trying to leave, officials said. The girlfriend jumped to safety from a second-floor window. She, too, thought Kenny was on the second floor.

Houston's mother, Montika Lowe, said detectives showed her a surveillance video from a store at Thurman and Newport Streets.

She saw a person in dark clothing with a hood covering the head. The person walked toward Holmes' house and minutes later ran away while removing a pair of light-colored gloves. That's when the house erupted in flames.

"The detectives told us it was a homicide, but they are trying to get more details," Kenny Holmes Jr.'s mother, DaBriah Pace, said.

Holmes also wonders. He said that he had not lived a perfect life but that he never assaulted his girlfriend, didn't own a gun, and the drugs were not his. Assault charges related to the domestic dispute were dismissed. The drug charges are pending. Holmes spent eight days in jail before relatives posted bail so he could attend his son's funeral.

Authorities, meanwhile, want to talk to witnesses.

"We believe there were people in the neighborhood who saw something," said Eric Wren, an investigator with the Camden County Prosecutor's Office. Anyone with information is asked to call Wren at 856-225-8400. Callers can remain anonymous, he said.

"They were good kids," said Wren, recently assigned to take a fresh look at the case. "We want to do right by them."