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Authorities continue to seek cause of death for man in burning car
The man lived at the house at which he was found.
YOUNGSTOWN — Police and the Mahoning County coroner are still trying to determine what killed a 47-year-old man found dead in a burning car earlier this week.
Police learned the identity of the man found in the vehicle on the East Side only hours after the body had been discovered.
According to police reports, the man has been identified as Timothy Phillips, 47, of McGuffey Road. Phillips was found at 2:36 a.m. Thursday morning inside the car in the driveway of his home in the 2700 block of McGuffey.
The coroner’s office said there has been no cause or manner determined in Phillips’ death. Coroner Dr. David M. Kennedy said nothing will be released until a full autopsy has been conducted and investigations by the police and fire departments are concluded.
According to police, firefighters were called to the home to extinguish the fire and found the body of the man in the front driver’s seat of the car badly burned. Reports say Phillips’ left arm was in a defensive position as if trying to shield himself from something.
Police spoke with the owner of the 1998 Pontiac Grand Prix in which Phillips was found. The South Side woman told police that Phillips is her uncle and that the car was being driven by him.
Officers also spoke with the man who called 911 to report the fire. The man said he called 911 as he was passing by the address and noticed the car on fire but did not see anything else.
Police also spoke with a neighbor who said he did not hear anything unusual at the time of the 911 call.
jgoodwin@vindy.com