By Sarah Tan
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN — Police are questioning staff employed by the contractor who performed renovation work on the Stamford, Conn., home of Manhattan ad exec Madonna Badger, after a tragic Christmas Day fire killed her parents and three young daughters.
Investigators from the Stamford Police Department have spoken to employees of Badger's contractor boyfriend Michael Borcina, who was also interviewed by police regarding renovations done to the $1.7 million mansion prior to the fatal Dec. 25 blaze, a law enforcement official said.
Badger and Borcina both survived the devastating fire, but her father Lomer Johnson, 71, mother Pauline, and daughters Lily Badger, 9, and 7-year-old twins, Grace and Sarah Badger, all perished in the blaze.
Investigators, who are reportedly considering criminal charges, interviewed Badger last week about the incident.
The ad executive, who once worked as an art director for Calvin Klein, and her family formerly lived in Manhattan.
Johnson, a former Saks Fifth Avenue Santa, was found near the body of one of the girls, and investigators believe he was trying to save her, according to reports.
Investigators think the fire was sparked by ashes from the fireplace that were placed by Borcina next to the trash in the entranceway of the 100-year-old house, the Associated Press reported.
In a tragic twist, investigators think that the ashes were removed from the fireplace so that the children would not be concerned about Santa Claus coming down the chimney.
The home reportedly had no new certificate of occupancy, and smoke detectors that had been installed months before had not been hooked up.
Borcina has hired a lawyer despite the deaths being ruled accidental.
A spokesman from the Stamford Police Department said investigators will have updates on the case by the end of next week.
