Vancouver police have released the name of the 26-year-old woman killed in an explosion in an East Vancouver apartment.
Lana Marie Christophersen died Sunday morning in what police say was a deliberate blast in the fifth-floor suite.
Christophersen, an Alberta resident, had just moved into the apartment after answering an ad from her new roommate, a 21-year-old man.
He was severely burned in the explosion and remains in critical condition.
Investigators say another man, who is believed to have known the victim, was seen running from the scene shortly after the explosion.
Police believe the suspect used gasoline to set off the explosion and may have burns or other injuries from the fireball.
Const. Tim Fanning said Monday that investigators have only been able to speak to the man briefly in hospital.
"The 21-one-year-old is completely innocent, not known to police at all," Fanning told a news conference.
Fanning said, Christophersen was known to police and believe she knew the suspect.
Investigators believe the person responsible for the explosion was in the apartment unit just before the blast.
He called on nearby residents to check for stolen gasoline cans and to be on the lookout for anyone with burns, adding the requests are simply precautions and don't necessarily reflect leads in the case.
"If anybody has had a gas can stolen, please phone in and report it," he said. "It may or may not be linked to this investigation."
Fanning said investigators have not yet determined what started the blaze and continue to pore over the site for clues.
"We are literally down on our hands and knees," he said of the laborious process.
Christophersen's death marks Vancouver's 17th homicide of the year.
