Press Release  Tentative ID made in case of Rowley car fire

ROWLEY — A 79-year-old woman has been tentatively identified as the victim inside a burning car found early Friday in Rowley, Essex County District Attorney Paul F. Tucker announced.

Susan Frey of Gloucester was the lone occupant in a 2003 Volkswagen Beetle that was reported crashed on a private driveway at 935 Haverhill St. about 12:56 a.m. The vehicle had no connection to that address.

First responders found the car fully engulfed by fire and a single deceased occupant inside. Based on evidence found at the scene and inside Frey’s apartment, foul play is not suspected. The victim’s identity is subject to confirmation by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

Rowley Police Chief Scott Dumas said that about an hour prior to the crash, a Rowley Police officer spotted the same vehicle, parked across town on Stackyard Road. The officer spoke with the driver, assessed the driver as capable of continuing to drive and gave the driver directions back to the road leading to their home.

The officer then followed the driver on Route 133 into Ipswich before alerting Ipswich Police that the vehicle was passing through their town.

Rowley Police had no further contact with the vehicle until receiving the crash report at the location back in Rowley.

The crash is under investigation by the Essex County District Attorney’s Office State Police Detective Unit, Massachusetts State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section, Massachusetts State Police detectives assigned to the State Fire Marshal’s Office and the Rowley Police Department, with assistance from the Gloucester Police Department.

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