Former friend reportedly set house ablaze, leaving homeowner with few options

SALT LAKE CITY —  One man is in jail and Lucky Luke Nipper has lost his home after his former friend reportedly set Nipper’s South Salt Lake home on fire.

KSL TV reporter Garna Mejia spoke Saturday with Nipper, who said he arrived on the scene Friday night at the same time as fire officials.

Mejia reported that when the homeowner got there, the home was already fully engulfed in flames.

The former friend who is in jail is 27-year-old Jessie Ray Bartley. A statement of probable cause said a witness saw Bartley fill a soda bottle with gasoline, then walk toward the home at 39 East Claybourne Avenue. Bartley then disappeared, reappeared on the home’s driveway, and walked away.

And then the witness saw flames and smoke coming from the house.

Nipper told KSL TV he won’t be able to salvage anything, and that because he is currently unemployed, he let his fire insurance lapse.

Listen to the full story above to learn why a former friend allegedly set Lucky Luke Nipper’s home on fire.

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