LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — A man who allegedly set fire to landscaping outside Las Vegas police headquarters told officers he wanted to get arrested, according to an arrest report.
According to the report, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department investigators received video of Christian Vega, 35, in which he notices a paper plate on a curb, picks it up, lights it on fire, and places it in a hedge. LVMPD employees noticed the fire and removed it from the bushes, which prevented it from igniting the plants. Officials said the plate did not ignite completely and did not set the hedge on fire.
Some time later, after stepping over a small hedge, the video showed Vega bending over and setting that hedge on fire. According to the report, the hedge immediately went up in flames, and Vega jumped a wall into a nearby apartment complex.
Vega was arrested on Aug. 10. When asked why he set fire to the landscaping, Vega reportedly told officers, “I was trying to get attention.” He told police he wanted to go to jail and admitted to using a lighter to start the fire, the report said.
He told investigators he had planned to light the fire for approximately a week and went to LVMPD headquarters on Aug. 9 specifically for that purpose, adding that the fire had worked to get the attention of police, the report said. He also told police he ran away from the fire when it became larger than he anticipated.
The arrest report outlined Vega’s previous criminal history, which included multiple arrests for trespassing and possession of a controlled substance. Additionally, Vega had previously been accused of malicious destruction of private property, carrying a concealed weapon without a permit, sexual assault of a child under 14, and lewdness with a child under 14 by a person 18 or older.
Vega faces felony arson charges and is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Aug. 27. He was also due in court on Thursday on a felony charge related to failing to register as a sex offender.
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