House Fire in Early Morning Hours May Lead to Arson Charges

Winona Fire Engine Photo: TJ Leverentz/KWNO

(KWNO)- Early this morning, around 3:39 a.m. The Winona Police and Winona Fire Department responded to a possible house fire report on the 200 block of St. Charles street.

The Winona Fire Department was first on the scene and was able to extinguish the fire fairly quickly. The WPD says that the fire was on the living room carpet and only a couple of feet by a couple of feet wide.

When the Police Department came to the scene, officers found Matthew Nguyen, 37 of Winona, on the house’s front porch.

Nguyen was waiting for officers to arrive and was holding a bag of marijuana that he willingly gave to Officers. Officers eventually pulled six bags in total off of his person and there was a total of 392 grams of marijuana.

According to Police, Nguyen was very cooperative and after giving up the bag of marijuana, admitted to starting the fire himself.

Officers said that Nguyen was showing welfare ideations and suicidal ideations and at one point said he set fire to his house because he wanted to die. Later, he retracted that statement and claimed that he just wanted a new house. After a mental evaluation at Winona Health, he was cleared and then arrested.

Nguyen was charged with 5th-degree possession of a controlled substance and the WPD said that arson charges are “Possible.”