SLT police say deaths are suspicious

South Lake Tahoe - The deaths of a couple discovered dead inside their Bruce Drive home on Saturday have been ruled "suspicious" by South Lake Tahoe police.

A gun was found in the home on the 3400 block of Bruce Drive, police said, but they would not elaborate the details of the scene nor the identities of the man and woman, described as in their 60s.

Neighbors and other records indicated Sunday the residents are Stanley and Shirley Reinhert, two people who have lived in the Bijou neighborhood for at least 20 years. But no one interviewed heard anything leading up to the 11:50 a.m. call.

"This was a tragedy," said Kyle Fiori, who had joined police and their daughter into the home and saw the couple. "I'm still getting flashbacks. It was a horrible sight."

Fiori went horseback riding Sunday to try to erase the images.

When asked about her neighbors' health, she said there was something that "didn't seem quite right" with Stanley Reinhert. And, the couple returned early from their annual desert winter trip in a recreational vehicle a few weeks ago, she added. They were also known to go four-wheeling.

Fiori got involved when a concerned daughter said she wanted a welfare check on her parents. The neighbor said she went around the home and didn't see anything out of the ordinary.

El Dorado County Coroner's notes of evidence were posted on Stanley's Ford F-150 truck and the front door.

Neighbor Deborah Champlin said, "I can't believe it. I'm in complete shock."

Champlin said she never heard any arguments from the residence. Moreover, the couple had just celebrated their 50th anniversary together, she added.

Patrol cars, a paramedic, a sheriff's vehicle and fire trucks were at the home at about noon Saturday.

In the police log for the day, the call was a report as "unattended deaths." A police sergeant said Sunday the case is under investigation.