Man Charged With Arson In St. Louis Park Fire, Standoff

ST. LOUIS PARK, MN — One man was charged Friday in an hours-long standoff at an apartment building in St. Louis Park that began with a fire and involved death threats, according to police.

Kahron A. Nix, 29, faces charges of first-degree arson, first-degree drug possession, and threats of violence. If convicted, Kahron faces up to 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine.

At about 8:45 a.m. on Tuesday, St. Louis Park police officers and fire crews responded to a fire alarm at an apartment complex on Camerata Way. Officers also fielded reports of a man yelling and threatening to kill people, according to the criminal complaint.

The man was identified as Nix, who lives in one of the apartment units on Camerata Way, investigators said. Officers had responded to the same residence earlier that morning over similar reports, police said.

At the scene, officers noticed smoke in the hallway outside of Nix's apartment, authorities said. There was smoke coming from the trash chute in the hallway and also coming from underneath Nix's door, according to police.

Officers knocked on his door, but Nix refused to open it and threatened to shoot the officers, the criminal complaint states. After more death threats, a SWAT team responded and the building was evacuated but Nix remained in his unit, authorities said.

After several hours of failed negotiations, SWAT members breached Nix's apartment and arrested him, the criminal complaint states.

Officers also found two plastic baggies containing cocaine on the kitchen counter, plus four additional baggies of cocaine in a bedroom safe, investigators said. In total, police found 67 grams of cocaine divided into six separate baggies, according to the criminal complaint.

Additionally, police found $3,400 in cash and fake documents with several different people’s names on them, according to authorities.

Police also learned that Nix set fire to a trash can and threw the trash can down the garbage chute, which started a fire in the dumpster and caused significant damage to the building, the criminal complaint states.