A Pennsylvania man blew up his own house on his daughter’s wedding day, police say, killing himself after the home exploded.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that residents in an Edgewood neighborhood told police they saw the man standing in front of his house at 318 Garland Street on Saturday afternoon, as it caught fire. Within minutes, the home exploded.
Police think the man purposely killed himself by lighting the residence on fire from the inside, then waiting for it to explode.
“It’s my understanding that his family had a wedding today, and that most of the family was out of the house, but we have witnesses that indicate they saw him near the house just before the explosion,” Police Chief Robert Payne with the Edgewood Police Department told the outlet.
Authorities found the man’s body buried in rubble on Saturday night. His name has not yet been released but his death has been officially ruled as suicide.
Chief Payne said it was “kind of odd” and troublesome when authorities found a cellphone sitting on the windshield of the man’s SUV, parked close to the home. Detectives believe the cellphone belonged to the unnamed man.
The police chief added that officers had been called to the home several times on Saturday prior to the explosion, but he wouldn’t elaborate on what the calls were about.
According to CBS 3, however, police reportedly said they had been to the house in the past on issues of domestic violence and mental illness.
Payne added that the fire was suspicious since there was no reason for that particular house to blow up. He also said, “it looks like he disconnected the gas line in the basement of the house.”
“And of course, it wouldn’t take much of a spark to explode the house.”
The only other injury on Saturday occurred when an Edgewood police officer broke his wrist while assisting a firefighter.
The story is developing. So far there is no known motive. Check back for further details.
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