Hitchcock, Texas: Police Investigate Homicide After Brandi Gregg, 46, Is Found Dead in Fire Damaged Home

Hitchcock police are investigating a homicide after Brandi Gregg, 46, was found dead early Wednesday inside a home on North Railroad Avenue that had been damaged by a fire three days earlier. Assistant Chief Jeff Evans said officers were called to the home, off Highway 6 near Helen Road, shortly after midnight on Wednesday for a report of an unresponsive woman. Gregg lived at the home, police said.

Found by residents returning for belongings

People who lived at the property went back to the house after Sunday's fire to retrieve personal belongings, and they found Gregg's body. Police said in their first account that the body was found under a pile of debris. John Shandley, who says he lives on the property, told FOX 26 that a woman searching through belongings in the kitchen, near Gregg's room, moved storage totes that were blocking the area under a bed and found her there. "I just immediately dropped down and started crying," Shandley said. He said he had helped get people out of the home when the fire started on Sunday and did not see Gregg at that time.

Police say the death is not connected to the fire

Evans said the home was thoroughly searched after the fire on Sunday, and investigators believe Gregg's body was not inside the house when the fire happened. Based on the evidence, investigators believe she died sometime after fire crews cleared the scene on Sunday night and before her body was discovered early Wednesday. Evans said Gregg had no burn marks, no gunshot wounds and no stab wounds. Police say her death is suspicious and is not related to the fire. People were inside the home when the fire broke out on Sunday. The fire damaged the house, but no injuries were reported, and the cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Autopsy will decide how she died

The Galveston County Medical Examiner's Office took Gregg's remains for an autopsy, which will determine how she died. Hitchcock police are working with the Galveston County Sheriff's Office as the homicide investigation continues. Police have not announced a suspect or any arrests. Anyone with information about Gregg's death is asked to contact the Hitchcock Police Department.