Man charged with arson ‘cut off his own genitals and set fire to them’

A suspect was arrested after a fire at his mother’s garage (Picture: Facebook/Fort Wayne Fire Department)

A man from Indiana is facing up to 12 years in prison after allegedly cutting off his genitals to start a fire at his mother’s garage.

The investigation began on May 6 after a fire at a detached garage. At the same time that Fort Wayne firefighters were responding,Fort Wayne Police Department officers were also heading out to reports of a stabbing incident.

Neighbours of the garage owners awoke them upon noticing the blaze,which was when they noticed that family member Christopher Peden was missing.

Officers then found Peden,with court records showing that he claimed he had been stabbed in the city’s downtown area,having been threatened by someone the day before.

He was transported to hospital,where he reportedly confessed to cops that he had been ‘dishonest’.

Wanting to be ‘truthful’,the 36-year-old told investigators how,at around 2am,he ‘harmed himself’ by using a kitchen knife to chop off his penis.

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Start your day informed with Metro's News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens.Christopher Peden,36,was charged with felony arson after he allegedly cut off his own genitals and set them alight (Picture: Fort Wayne Police)As per FOX 59,he then poured gasoline on the dismembered organ and ‘set it on fire on the floor of the garage just inside the door’.He left the garage (at the property where both his mother and brother live) and walked away until he eventually encountered law enforcement.Upon examining the scene,police discovered a red plastic gasoline container,four lighters,and a kitchen knife.Court documents do not say whether his genitals were found.Peden’s mother and brother further told police that the garage only stored a gas container for their lawnmower,and it did not have electricity.The fire ultimately damaged two nearby properties and two vehicles.Charged with arson,which is a Level 4 felony,Peden is due to appear in court next week for his trial dates to be set,having paid a $10,000 (£7.5k) bond on Tuesday.His attorney,David Felts,said he was recently retained and has not had a chance to speak to his client yet.The Independent adds that he had ‘no comment’ when asked about Peden’s so-called confession to police.If convicted,Peden faces both jail time and a maximum fine of $10k.Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at .For more stories like this,check our news page.