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Man Arrested for Cutting Off His Own Penis and Using It to Start a Fire in His Neighbor’s Garage

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09.07.2026

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Man Arrested for Cutting Off His Own Penis and Using It to Start a Fire in His Neighbor’s Garage

Possibly the strangest arson charge of all time.

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Fire starting 101 says you need wood. Christopher Peden, a 36-year-old from Fort Wayne, Indiana, had a very specific interpretation of that rule.

According to court documents reported by FOX 59, Peden entered a neighbor’s detached garage on May 6, cut off his own penis with a kitchen knife, poured gasoline on it, and set it on fire on the garage floor just inside the door. He then walked away, encountered police, and told them he’d been stabbed somewhere in downtown Fort Wayne. Investigators collected a red plastic gas container, four lighters, and a kitchen knife from the garage. The........

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