JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Detectives continued to investigate Thursday after a 61-year-old woman's body was found inside a home on Harlow Boulevard.
An SUV fire Wednesday evening in Cedar Hills on Hyde Park Road led police to the body of Bradla Sue Cook in the home. Police said they went to the house because because that was the address listed on the vehicle registration.
Police said the vehicle and the home belonged to Cook.
Before learning the identity of the victim, neighbors in the area said they hope it wasn't Cook.
"She's a great lady, and I just can't picture it being her because I would never think anyone would want to hurt her because she is very sweet to everyone," neighbor Sabrina Riley said. "I'm honestly hoping to hear that it's somebody else and not her."
"It's sad. I don't like it. It's a tragedy, you know," Dick Kalka said.
Kalka said he's raised his family in the neighborhood and has been there for 30 years.
"I was talking to my daughter before and I told her what was going on down here and she said, 'Daddy, you're going to have to start looking for a new place, a new neighborhood,'" Kalka said. "What can you say?"
Police had the street around the Westside home taped off for the most of the day while they investigated. Investigators were also interviewing neighbors.
Police believe Cook had adult children.
A man who identified himself as the Cook's ex-husband spent most of the day at the scene, and at one point police allowed him behind their tape to put her dogs in his vehicle.
There is a neighborhood watch program in the area, but some neighbors said they are still thinking of ways to keep themselves and their families safe.
Anyone with information about Cook's death or saw anything suspicious at the home Wednesday evening is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 866-845-TIPS.