Man ‘cuts off his own penis and uses it to set fire to a garage’ | US | News

What started as an investigation into a stabbing and arson took a shocking turn when an Indiana man admitted to using his severed penis to light a campfire.

On May 6, the Fort Wayne Fire Department responded to a fire at a detached garage. Around the same time, police responded to a report of a stabbing, according to a probable cause affidavit.

The owners of the garage said a neighbor woke them up to inform them about the fire. They noticed that the family member, 36-year-old Christopher Peden, was nowhere to be found.

Meanwhile, Fort Wayne police located a stabbing victim identified as Peden, according to court documents. While being transported to the hospital, he claimed he was stabbed somewhere in downtown Fort Wayne.

Peden claimed that he was also threatened the day before. Peden later told investigators that he “wasn’t being honest” about the stabbing and that he “wanted to be honest,” according to court documents.

No one could guess the real cause of the fire. According to court documents, Peden explained that he went to the garage and “hurt himself” by “cutting off his penis” with a kitchen knife.

He reported to investigators that his member poured gasoline on himself and “set fire to the garage floor just inside the door.”

He then left the scene and was later spotted by police. Investigators seized several items from the garage as evidence, including a red plastic gasoline container, four lighters and a kitchen knife, according to court documents.

Peden currently faces a charge of arson, which is classified as a Level 4 crime. Court records confirm the hearing is scheduled for next week.