Police were already at the scene when firefighters responded to the fire on Glenn Avenue at 1 a.m, said Sgt. Wesley Herman of the Citrus Heights Police Department. Officers had been to the house earlier that night for a welfare check, he said, but the man refused to talk to police. So when firefighters arrived, officers told them there might be someone inside.
Firefighters found the man in the hallway where he allegedly tried to stab a firefighter with a knife, Herman said. The man was subdued and taken to the hospital to be treated for burns and smoke inhalation.
Firefighters contained the fire, but the home was “significantly damaged,” said Diana Schmidt, fire inspector for the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District.
Herman said the man will be charged with assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer. He has not yet been identified.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation and is not being treated as a crime scene, Schmidt said.
Molly Sullivan: 916-321-1176, @SullivanMollyM
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