Mother and Her Son, 13, Died in a House Fire. Police Suspect Her Boyfriend, Who Also Died in the Blaze, Started It

Police believe the May 14 blaze stemmed from a domestic violence incident involving the mom’s boyfriend of eight months, whom she met on TikTok

A mother, her boyfriend and her teenage son died in a California house fire. Investigators now believe the boyfriend to be the suspect.

Rossy Borquez, her boyfriend and her 13-year-old son, Atiel, have been identified by KTLA as the three victims of the blaze, which broke out at Borquez’s Montebello home in the early hours of Thursday, May 14.

Police responded to the scene around 4:30 a.m. local time to discover the home “fully engulfed” in fire, according to a news release from the Montebello Police Department (MPD). Officers found a man and woman with “severe burns” — identified by KTLA as Borquez and her boyfriend — in front of the home.

One of Borquez’s neighbors, Alisson Gomez, recalled the horrific scene to ABC 7. “We saw a man and a lady just burning,” Gomez told the outlet. “Honestly, all her skin was off. Her hair burnt off completely, and she was just screaming for her son.”

The couple was transported to a local hospital, where they later died of their injuries, according to the MPD. An additional victim — identified by KTLA as Borquez’s son, Atiel — was found dead in the home.

Police said that the Montebello Fire Department was “eventually” able to put out the fire, which also knocked out power in the area, per KTLA. It also forced nearby residents to evacuate, according to ABC 7.

Arson investigators and detectives with the MPD are jointly investigating the fatal blaze. On Thursday, police said there were “no outstanding suspects” in the ongoing investigation, but KTLA reported the following day that investigators believe the man who died in the fire is the suspect.

Montebello Police Chief Luis Lopez believes the incident was domestic violence-related, according to statements obtained by both KTLA and ABC 7.

“We’re trying to find out what happened hours, or even days, leading up to the incident so we can identify a motive,” the police chief said, per KTLA. “We believe the male involved in this case is the suspect. We do believe this is a domestic violence incident.”

A spokesperson for the Montebello Police Department did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on Sunday, May 17.

In an interview with KTLA, Borquez’s friend, Hermalinda Anaya, shared more insight about the late mom’s boyfriend, whom Borquez had been dating for approximately eight months after connecting on TikTok.

Days before she died in the house fire, Borquez mentioned that her boyfriend, who allegedly accused her of seeing other men, was controlling, Anaya told KTLA. He also allegedly took the mom’s cell phone away and told people to stay away from her, Borquez’s friend told the outlet.

Borquez, Anaya told ABC 7, “told me she’s so mad, she’s so upset at all the things that he do,” referring to her boyfriend. “He tell her, ‘I’m not gonna let you, nobody else be with you because I paid for your surgery, and I’m not gonna let you be with nobody else.’ “

Borquez also had an older daughter, who shared a statement about her mother with KTLA. The daughter, whom the outlet did not identify, said her mom “was the most hardworking person I have ever known.”

“She went to another country without knowing the language just so her younger child could have better opportunities,” the daughter told KTLA of Borquez, who was born in Guasave, Mexico, according to her Facebook account.

“I’m devastated, angry and missing my brother and mother,” she continued. “They were victims, and now there’s no one to take accountability and direct my anger towards.”

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages