Man arrested after having ‘mental health emergency’ and starting own Benton County house on fire

A man in Minden Township was arrested after having a “mental health crisis” and starting his own house on fire, according to the Benton County Sheriff’s Office.

Justin Michael Kriedeman, 29, is being held in Benton County Jail on charges of 1st-degree arson, 2nd-degree assault and 5th-degree controlled substance crime.

Around 1 p.m. on Tuesday, law enforcement responded to a home in the 7000 block of Hwy 95 NE after receiving a 911 call from a man stating that Kriedeman was making threatening statements about a gun and burning down his own home.

According to the news release, authorities arrived to find a detached garage completely in flames. Law enforcement also found the 911 caller, who stated that earlier in the day, during a phone conversation, Kriedeman was showing symptoms of a mental health emergency and threatened to start a fire.

The 911 caller then went to Kriedeman’s home and saw the garage on fire, and Kriedeman saying that he had a gun. When Kriedeman tried to leave the property in a minivan, the 911 caller said he used his own vehicle to stop him from driving away, which resulted in their vehicles colliding several times.

Kriedeman then crashed the minivan into a shed on the property and ran away, according to the 911 caller’s statement in the press release.

As deputies were gathering information, multiple gunshots were heard in the nearby area.

Kriedeman was found on the property and eventually arrested after a struggle with law enforcement.

Multiple firearms were found in the area where Kriedeman was arrested, as stated in the news release.

Once the scene was secured, firefighters from the Sauk Rapids and Foley Fire Departments began putting out the fire that had spread to and severely damaged the attached garage and home.

Kriedeman was taken to the St. Cloud Hospital, where he was evaluated and released.

He was then brought to the Benton County Jail, according to the press release.