The cabin where fugitive ex-LAPD cop Christopher Dorner made his final stand was an idyllic vacation home where the owner and her family gathered for holidays and get-togethers before becoming a crime scene and charred ruin.
The cabin, located in the town of Angelus Oaks in the foothills of the San Bernardino Mountains, was also the main lodge in a 9-unit facility that owner Candice Martin and her family ran as a small lodging business called 7 Oaks Mountain Cabins. The main lodge was also the heart of activities for Martin's extended family.
“The purpose of purchasing the cabins was for our family to have a place where we could all get together,” Martin’s son-in-law, Will Bowerman, told FoxNews.com.
Martin bought the 90-year-old cabin and surrounding property in 2004 and had extensive renovations done up until as recently as last summer.
“We basically gutted everything out and replaced it. New electrical, plumbing, furniture - all of it,” Bowerman said.
The cabin was burnt to the ground Tuesday after a tense shootout between Christopher Dorner and local cops that resulted in the death of a one sheriff’s deputy and the wounding of another. A body believed to be Dorner's was found in the charred rubble early Wednesday morning.
It was not clear how the blaze started, but reports suggest that it may have been started by authorities.
Martin, who was not available for comment, has fire insurance on the cabin but the family was not sure how to proceed with a claim.
“We’re not really sure how this would be handled,” Bowerman said.
While upset, that the cabin is gone, Bowerman said the real tragedy was the four lives taken by Dorner.
“It was a big deal, but it doesn’t compare to what he [Dorner] did. It was a place where our family could go to,” he said. "All we can do is rebuild.”
FoxNews.com’s Joshua Rhett Miller contributed reporting to this story.
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