RAMONA, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) — A Cal Fire captain was fatally stabbed at her home in Ramona Monday in what San Diego County Sheriff’s Department officials are investigating as a suspected homicide.
According to the sheriff’s department, deputies were dispatched to the residence in the 20200 block of Rancho Villa Road around 8:58 p.m. upon receiving a radio call reporting an assault with a deadly weapon in the area.
Once at the scene, deputies found the woman — confirmed by FOX 5/KUSI and identified in a Facebook post on Tuesday by the city of Menifee Fire Station 68 as Fire Captain Rebecca Marodi — suffering from multiple stab wounds.
Life-saving measures were administered by Cal Fire paramedics, but authorities said she ultimately succumbed to the injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.
The sheriff’s Homicide Unit responded after Marodi died and assumed responsibility of the investigation.
Detectives are investigating the off-duty death as a potential domestic violence incident, believing Marodi knew the suspect.
“Currently, the motivation and circumstances surrounding the homicide remain unclear, and detectives are diligently gathering more information to establish the facts of the case,” Lt. Michael Krugh with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department said in a news release.
Marodi, who served over 30 years with Cal Fire with Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego Counties, was promoted to fire captain at Cal Fire Riverside’s Temecula station back in 2022, according to a post from her former position with the county’s Hazmat Team. It is unclear when she served at the station in Menifee.
“The tragic loss of Captain Marodi is mourned by her family, friends, and her CAL FIRE family,” Cal Fire San Diego said in a Facebook post.
A neighbor of Marodi, Monika Evans, remembered her as a friendly face in the neighborhood.
“They’d be mowing, they’d be doing wood, gardening … you know the usual stuff,” Evans said. “Never saw any problems.”
Cal Fire crews held a procession for Marodi as her body was transferred to the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked by the sheriff’s department to contact the Homicide Unit at 858-285-6330 — 858-868-3200 for after hours calls — or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477.
“Our thoughts and condolences are with the family and friends of the victim during this difficult time,” Krugh said. “We assure the public that we are using all available resources to thoroughly investigate and seek justice in this case.”
