Man who died in Kitchener courthouse car fire identified

KITCHENER - The man who died after his car exploded last month in front of the Kitchener courthouse can be identified after a publication ban was lifted Tuesday.

Keith Andrew Sandford died in the Aug. 14 incident. Waterloo Regional Police have said some sort of accelerant was used to spark the fire, and investigators believe it was intentionally set by the man in the vehicle.

Sandford was involved in a family court dispute with his estranged wife. The car was registered in Sandford's name.

Police initially said a suspected improvised explosive device" caused the vehicle to explode that morning, but concluded a few days later that an incendiary device" was ignited within the car, which caused the explosion.

Several passersby tried to rescue the man from the burning car, but were driven back by intense heat and flames. Later that day, police used an explosive disposal unit robot to search the car, and also searched two Kitchener homes in connection to the incident.