Austin, MN (KROC AM News) - An Austin man is accused of starting a fire inside a house because he was mad at one of the people who was staying there.

The fire was reported around 10:00 AM Wednesday.

First responders arrived to find two women on the roof and a man who had fled the burning house. It was later learned a second man had also spent the night at the house. He was identified as 29-year-old Darrell Wigham.

The other man who had been in the house told police Wigham had poured paint thinner on the door leading to the upstairs where the two women were sleeping. That was around 2:00 AM. The man says Wigham told him he was upset at one of the women and said he was going “to kill them.”

One of the women told police she smelled a “chemical odor” around 4:00 AM and Wigham told her he was “burning the house down.”  It’s believed the fire started burning around 9:00 AM. The women were forced to go out an upstairs window and onto the roof to escape.

Wigham has been charged with 6 counts of attempted murder and one count of arson.

During his arraignment Friday, his bail was set at $1,000,000.

 

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