A man in the Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, claimed a fire was started outside his own home because of his support for former President Donald Trump.
But, as it turns out, he started the fire himself.
In September 2020, Denis Molla claimed his RV had been set on fire and graffiti that read “Biden 2020” and “BLM” had been sprayed on his garage door because of the Trump 2020 flags he had on display.
The day after the inferno, Molla appeared on local television in an emotional interview to recall seeing three people running away from his home before the vehicle exploded — and in the immediate aftermath he was focused only on getting his two children aged 2 years and 5 months, and their puppies safely off the property.
Watch the video here:
Molla pleaded guilty in US court to one count of wire fraud on Tuesday, according to a statement from the Justice Department after “frauding insurance claims for a staged arson.”
“In reality, Molla set fire to his own property and sprayed the graffiti on his own garage,” it reads.
According to the report, Molla received approximately $61,000 in insurance benefits and $17,000 in donations through a GoFundMe crowdfunding page. His sentencing date has not yet been determined.
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
