Call it a case of instant karma.
A New Mexico man is reportedly still on the run after accidentally setting himself on fire while trying to set fire to his ex-girlfriend’s house last month.
According to KOAT, Albuquerque police are searching for Artemio Sanchez Ortega, 46, who was seen on a neighbor’s security camera setting fire to a home where his ex-girlfriend and her children were present on May 24 and then fleeing the scene.
Daniel Provine, a neighbor who filmed the incident, blasted Sanchez Ortega and condemned his crime.
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A neighbor’s security camera captured the suspected arsonist accidentally setting himself on fire while trying to set fire to his ex-girlfriend’s house. (Daniel Provine via Storyful)
“Don’t set fires… but if you do, maybe you should think about how to avoid burning yourself in the process,” Provine wrote.
The video shows Sanchez-Ortega calmly walking down a neighborhood street with a red gas can in hand, before the incident takes a turn for the worse when he leaps through the front gate of his ex-girlfriend’s house.
The yard was engulfed in flames and Sanchez-Ortega stumbled out of the yard with flames covering his body, but he managed to break free and make it to his truck, which he then drove off.
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A clumsy wannabe arsonist in New Mexico accidentally set himself on fire while trying to set fire to his ex-girlfriend’s house, KOAT reports. (Daniel Provine via Storyful)
Provine also confirmed that his video had been turned over to authorities and told KOAT he plans to do whatever he can to help his neighbors.
“To see the bitterness of lighting a fire and then the incompetence of being engulfed in flames in the process is just completely absurd and a real shame. I felt sorry for my neighbours and wanted to do whatever I could to help,” Mr Provine said.
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According to KOAT, the alleged arsonist, Artemio Sanchez Ortega, set himself on fire while trying to set fire to his ex-girlfriend’s house, and he faced swift consequences. (Daniel Provine via Storyful)
According to the criminal complaint obtained by KOAT, Sanchez-Ortega’s ex-girlfriend told investigators that the suspect had called her three times before the incident.
She also claimed she received a call from him on Friday evening and “could tell he had been drinking.”
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Fortunately, the suspect’s ex-girlfriend and their children were unharmed in the incident, according to KOAT.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Albuquerque Police Department for more information but has not yet heard back.
