Firefighter visited woman before she was found dead in burning home | Forensic Files

this week's episode of 48 Hours looks into the mysterious death of 27-year-old Melissa Lish on Thanksgiving Eve in 2020
the devoted EMT and expectant mother was found dead on her kitchen floor after her home was engulfed in flames at first
investigators could not tell if the fire killed her or if it was set to hide up or to hide a murder the investigation
would soon uncover Secrets here's an early look at 48 Hours contributor Nikki batiste's report on November 25th 2020
it was the day before Thanksgiving I received a phone call shortly after 4:00 from the Mount Morris police chief and
he asked me kind of frantically is anybody at my house and I said my daughter is and said there's a fire and
it's bad Gus Lish would learn his daughter Melissa was found on the kitchen floor by the stove Melissa a
27-year-old EMT was pregnant and just 2 days away from her due date did you have
any thoughts on whether this was an intentional fire or an accidental fire initially instinctively instinctively we
couldn't tell if it was intentional or accidental Brian ker was the lead investigator for the Ole County
Sheriff's Office we didn't know what happened to her investigators learned Melissa had a visitor at her home the
day of the fire Matthew Ploy the expectant father who was a firefighter Melissa and Matthew had a casual
relationship which cooled off when Melissa became pregnant he did not want the baby Heather Cruz assistant States
attorney says py did not want to be a father and kept the baby a secret he did not care about Melissa or her baby his
baby py though told investigators he had recently been talking to Melissa about being involved in the baby's life and
that was why he was at the house that day and that Melissa was alive when he left she talked about joing some food or
something but that we died didn't stay around I believe from the very beginning he was trying to set up a story that
there was an accidental house fire that she had been cooking something which would explain why her body was found in
the kitchen the state suspected Matthew Ploy was responsible for the fire and for killing Melissa it was a thought
that stunned Rob Schultz the fire chief where Matthew py worked it doesn't chime
with what a firefighter is we put fires out we don't start fires we help people we don't hurt
people it is Unthinkable you can watch Nikki's report the firefighter secret on 48 hours
tomorrow night at 109 Central here on CBS and streaming on Paramount Plus

On Thanksgiving Eve in 2020, an expectant mother was found dead inside her burning Illinois home. It was not immediately clear what caused her death. She had been involved with a firefighter – someone trained to save lives. Could he have set a fire to cover her murder? "48 Hours" contributor Nikki Battiste reports for this week's "48 Hours."

Each weekday morning, "CBS Mornings" co-hosts Gayle King, Tony Dokoupil and Nate Burleson bring you the latest breaking news, smart conversation and in-depth feature reporting. "CBS Mornings" airs weekdays at 7 a.m. on CBS and stream it at 8 a.m. ET on the CBS News app.

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Brief Summary

The episode investigates the death of EMT Melissa Lish, focusing on suspect Matthew Ploy and the circumstances surrounding the fire.

Key points

Mysterious Death of Melissa Lish. Explore the tragic case of Melissa Lish, found dead just days before giving birth.
The Firefighter's Secret. Investigators suspect a firefighter may be involved in the suspicious fire that killed Melissa.

Episode highlights

The Firefighter's SecretInvestigators suspect a firefighter may be involved in the suspicious fire that killed Melissa.“The state suspected Matthew Ploy was responsible for the fire and for killing Melissa.”2:17Nov 29, 2024

Episode quotes

We put fires out, we don't start fires.

Rob Schultz, fire chief, on Matthew Ploy's actions.

2:25WatchNov 29, 2024

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