An official investigation by the Renton Regional Fire Authority has deemed that the fire that destroyed an infamous stanced Mazda RX-8 was “intentional.” The cause has not been determined, however.
The car belongs to Lucas Fultz, who goes by the handle ‘Stancypants’ on Instagram. He posted photos of the RX-8 to his page following an incident that caused serious fire damage near in and around the engine compartment. At the time, he claimed that the blaze had been set by a person who hated the car and objected to someone setting a dangerous fire in a public place.
A number of commenters suggested that, because the fire damage seemed to be located around the engine bay, it may have happened accidentally, as a result of bad wiring or because of the modifications. The fire department’s report would appear to contradict that, though.
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The incident report was released to Road & Track, which wrote that the Renton Regional Fire Authority attributed the incident to “suspicious behavior.” It added that the fire originated in the engine area, but the “heat source,” “Item first ignited,” “Type of material first ignited,” and the “Factor contributing to ignition” sections of the report were listed as “Undetermined.”
Surprisingly, given that the fire is listed as being due to suspicious activity, the “Human Factors Contributing to Ignition” was recorded as “None.” Additionally, the investigation has been listed as “closed,” on the incident report.
Fultz, meanwhile, told the outlet that he has not been given much information from the fire or police departments because the case is, in his words, ongoing. He added that, although some neighbors saw some suspicious activity, there are no good camera angles of the event.
It is not clear at this point whether a criminal investigation is in progress. The Renton Police Department has confirmed that it has taken a report on the incident, but added that it is not investigating any further.
