Authorities suspect that an arsonist caused a massive fire that burned into the early morning hours Tuesday and destroyed a mansion on the Lake Minnetonka shoreline.
Authorities say suspicious fire destroys mansion on Lake Minnetonka
Police say they were told about someone with gas and candles.
December 30, 2021 at 12:33PM
The blaze in the village of Minnetonka Beach was reported to Orono police about 11:40 p.m. Monday.
Officers arrived at the home in the 2900 block of Westwood Road on Lafayette Bay and saw the second story engulfed in flames, police said.
Two residents standing in the drive were taken by emergency responders to a hospital for treatment of minor injuries, said Long Lake Fire Chief James Van Eyll. No other people were in the home when police arrived, but a dog that was inside has yet to be located.
Authorities received "a report of a mental health issue [and] one individual had gas and candles," a statement from police read. They received these details as fire alarms were sounding and the house was burning, the statement continued.
The statement added that police "are treating the matter as criminal and it is under investigation."
No arrests have been made, said police Sgt. Kenneth Beck.
"We're talking with the family," said Beck, who identified the homeowners as Michael and Pamela Schultz.
Van Eyll said the home is a total loss. Hennepin County property records show that it was assessed in January 2020 at nearly $3.4 million.
In 2016, the 6,320-square-foot home was featured in the magazine Artful Living and was described as having five bedrooms, seven bathrooms, a five-car garage, several balconies, porches and patios, and more than an acre of gardens and landscaping.
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