Investigation Continues Into Shooting Death Of City Fire Marshal
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Even though the Police Department has not identified a suspect, sources told NY1 Tuesday that the wife of city Fire Marshal Douglas Mercereau is being looked at in connection to his homicide.
Janet Mercereau called 911 Sunday morning to report her husband's shooting death inside their Staten Island home. Police sources said Tuesday they are asking the district attorney to put the case before a grand jury.
The fire commissioner says he expects an arrest to be made shortly.
“They have some leads they are exploring, and we really would be impropriate to go beyond that. But I anticipate that there will be an arrest sometime soon,” said Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta.
When police arrived on the scene, they found Mercereau in his bed covered with a sheet and three bullets in his head. His FDNY-issued nine-millimeter, which police have identified as the murder weapon, was found nearby.
The couple has two young daughters who were home at the time of the murder.
As a supervising fire marshal, Mercereau carried a weapon at all times.
"Fire marshalls are peace officers and like police officers they have weapons," said Scoppetta. "They are trained in the use of weapons, they are trained in all the safety precautions they have to take. They have the weapon with them 24 hours a day or access to a weapon 24 hours a day."
According to Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, there was one previous report of domestic violence at the house — a harassment complaint filed by Janet Mercereau against her husband, but he, too, stopped short of calling her suspect in this case.
“We’re not identifying anyone as a suspect at this time,” said Kelly. “There were no signs of forced entry into the house. The wife has obtained an attorney. [There have been] no discussions with her since that time.”
Neighbors were stunned to hear that Mercereau's wife may be connected to his death.
"My wife saw them all our trick-or-treating on Halloween, so, you know, they seemed to be pretty good," said a neighbor.
“I'm shocked, incredibly shocked," added another.
Mercereau was a 12-year veteran of the Fire Department where he worked with the Bureau of Investigation in Brooklyn.
Police Investigate Shooting Death Of FDNY Fire Marshal