Police yesterday reclassified last week's Makiki house fire that killed two people as a homicide following the fire department's determination that the fire was deliberately set.

However, only one of the victims is considered a homicide victim, police said. The other death has been classified as accidental.

Fire investigators released their report yesterday on the April 23 blaze at 2069 Mauna Place and classified it as "incendiary." The case was then turned over to the Honolulu Police Department for further investigation.

The early morning fire killed Khristy Ray Sasaki Bartlett, 38, and Larry Fair, 58, who were tenants in the three-story, five-bedroom home. Bartlett's body was found in an upstairs hallway and Fair was discovered in his room.

Both had been burned beyond recognition. The city medical examiner determined that the cause of death for both was "inhalation of smoke and products of combustion."

Police initially classified the case as unattended deaths, pending the outcome of the autopsies and fire investigation. Yesterday, police reclassified the case as a "homicide and accidental death," although they would not disclose which person was the homicide victim.

No arrests have been made and police said they have no suspects "at this time," said HPD spokesman Maj. Frank Fujii.

On the night of the fire, a neighbor said he heard loud arguing and doors slamming from inside the home. Police have yet to say whether the argument had anything to do with the blaze.

Yesterday, Fair's son Joshua said, "We're just hurt by finding out that it is arson." He would not comment on the results of the fire investigation.

Previously, two days after the fatal fire, Joshua Fair said he wanted answers to what caused the fire. He said his father had rented a room from homeowner H.R.H. Fleur for more than a year, but wanted to find someplace else to live.

Fleur could not be reached for comment yesterday. Calls to a daughter of Bartlett were not returned.

Fleur, her daughter and grandson, as well as three other renters, lived in the home along with Bartlett and Fair. The Fleurs escaped injury, while the tenants were not at home when the blaze started.

The fire caused an estimated $550,000 in damage to the home.