BALTIMORE (WJZ)— A deadly fire takes a bizarre twist. Police say the woman found dead inside her burning home was killed by a man she met online.

Meghan McCorkell has the disturbing details.

Police say Monte Carter, 38, murdered a Baltimore City social worker inside her own home after the two met on an online dating site.

It was a horrifying discovery for firefighters inside the Northwest Baltimore home. The body of 32-year-old Jennifer Conyers was in the basement, face down and tied up with electrical cords. She’d been beaten in the head.

Now police have arrested Carter, a man she’d allegedly met online.

“I don’t know what else to call him but an animal,” said Baltimore City police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi.

Investigators believe Carter beat Conyers in her bedroom, then tied her up, dragged her into the basement and then lit the house on fire.

“She was a good person and she really didn’t deserve this. Every time I come out of my house now, I look and it just makes me sad,” said neighbor Brenette Campbell.

Neighbors noticed Conyers’ car missing from her home.

“Every police officer in this city was looking for that white Mustang,” Guglielmi said.

Police found Conyers’ car Saturday morning at the corner of North Fremont and Pitcher. Carter was behind the wheel. Investigators say there was blood on his jeans and his shoes. He told them he stole Conyers’ ATM card and went on a drug binge. Carter claims he dated Conyers after they met online but hadn’t seen her in weeks.

Cybersecurity expert Tim Woda says this case is a tragic reminder of the dangers of the Internet.

“If you’re a predator and you seek to cause harm to people, these sites are a perfect hunting ground for you to find vulnerability and weakness in other people,” Woda said.

Carter is now charged with murder, robbery and arson.

Conyers was a social worker with the Baltimore City Health Department since 2008. A spokesperson says she was a valued employee and their deepest sympathies go to friends and family.

Carter is being held without bond.