Cops: Iraq vet tries to burn down home

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - A Northeast Albuquerque home erupted in flames just before midnight Tuesday after neighbors said a man they described as a troubled Iraq War veteran threatened to kill others and himself.

Once firefighters arrived on the scene, they found flames shooting out of the second-floor patio and roof. They entered the home and went up the stairs, but were pushed back by smoke and flames.

After they finished searching for victims, the unit pulled out of the building fearing a collapse. Less than a minute later, the roof partially collapsed.

The fire was extinguished within 40 minutes with no one injured. The home is a total loss, however.

Neighbors in the 600 block of Vista Abajo NE said that the man who lived in the home was threatening others when he set his house on fire. Neighbors said the man is an Iraq War veteran who had just returned home from serving 18 months in combat.

He was later taken to the Raymond G. Murphy VA Medical Center in Albuquerque. Arson investigators later dtermined the fire was deliberately set using some type of accelerant.

Albuquerque police confirmed they have responded to reports of domestic disturbances at the address on Vista Abajo several times this year.