Death after condo fire called homicide

CEDAR RAPIDS - A retired school bus attendant who was pulled from a burning condo last month and later died was likely attacked and gravely wounded beforehand, police said Friday.

Robyn Furmanski, 62, was taken March 31 from the fire to St. Luke's Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Authorities said her death is being investigated as a homicide and believe at least one assailant was involved.

'Investigators do not believe the victim was targeted randomly,” Cedar Rapids public safety spokesman Greg Buelow said Friday.

Autopsy findings from the State Medical Examiner's Office showed Furmanski 'may have sustained a traumatic injury prior to the fire,” police said in statement Friday.

The department declined to say what type of injury they believe she suffered.

Her death makes the third one so far this year in Cedar Rapids classified as a homicide or murder.

'She loved animals. She had a dog, fish, pigeons - she was just a very loving person,” said Furmanski's sister, Lois Marie Webb, of California. 'She knew no enemies. She could go up to anybody and talk. That was the way she was.”

Before retiring, Furmanski worked for the Cedar Rapids Community School District as a bus attendant because 'she loved kids,” Webb said.

Police said Furmanski was the sole occupant of one of the condominiums at 1218 Oakland Road NE at the time.

A fire there was reported at 2:42 a.m. March 31. Firefighters responding to the call encountered smoke coming from the building.

Police confirmed that everyone had gotten out safely - except for Furmanski.

Fire crews entering her unit to rescue her were met with 'heavy fire, smoke and heat conditions,” police said.

They said Friday that the cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Authorities appealed to the public for tips, encouraging anyone with information about the incident to call the Cedar Rapids Police Department at (319) 286-5400 or Linn County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-272-7463.

Cedar Rapids police responded to six homicides in 2015, down from eight from the year before.

This year, the cases investigated as homicides include the killing of Brandon Johnson, 21, who died March 19 after a shooting in the 1100 block of Maplewood Drive NE; and of Joseph P. Perkins, 24, who was found dead Feb. 23 at Cedar Valley Townhomes after police responded to reports of multiple gunshots.