A Minnesota landlord who was blaring Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire” at the scene of a blazing residential building has been accused of arson.
Travis Carlson, 37, was charged Tuesday with the ironic crime at a residence he owned in Duluth, according to the Duluth News Tribune.
First responders arrived to the fire in the north Minnesota city around 4 a.m. on May 18, the News Tribune reported. When they reached the scene, they heard the 1989 Billy Joel hit blasting from speakers in an upstairs apartment.
A downstairs tenant told investigators that Carlson knocked on his door around 3:30 a.m. and said simply, “The house is on fire,” local CBS affiliate KBJR reported.
The tenant had awoken earlier in the night to the sound of Carlson smashing and breaking things in the upstairs unit. A neighbor eventually called 911.
When officers arrived, Carlson had already fled the scene, leaving cops to listen to his factually inaccurate choice of music.
Arson investigators found a hole in the gas tank of Carlson’s truck and fire accelerant throughout his apartment, according to the News Tribune. A drill and a gas can were also discovered near the truck.
Duluth police found and arrested Carlson the next day. He had burns on his legs and arms, investigators said.
Local prosecutors said in court filings there may be “some mental health or drug-related concerns regarding the defendant’s behavior.”