Watch CBS News

Man Set Fire To West Side Home After Standoff With Police

CHICAGO (CBS) -- A man who police said was suffering emotional distress allegedly threatened a neighbor, then set fire to his own West Side home as police were trying to coax him outside.

WBBM Newsradio's Mike Krauser reports the fire started shortly before 10 a.m., in a yellow wood-frame house in the 5900 block of West Iowa Street, along the Chicago-Oak Park border.

Eddie Pittman, who lives down the street, said the man who lived there had previously threatened to kill him.

"This happened before, a while back, and I called the police before," he said.

Pittman said the man he knows as Chuy was on the on the porch with a propane tank when police arrived Thursday morning, and there was a brief standoff.

"After a while, the police saw smoke coming out on the back of the house," he said.

The man lived in the house with his wife and two kids, according to another neighbor, Antoine Bailey, who said the man was always making tacos and offering them to neighbors.

"That's what he's known for, standing around, 'Hey, anybody want any tacos?' Really nice guy,"

The man's family was not home at the time. He was taken to a hospital for evaluation.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.