Glendale man tied to Monrovia warehouse fire found dead of self-inflicted gunshot wound

A 25-year-old Glendale man suspected of setting an arson fire in Monrovia that destroyed his father’s warehouse storing roughly a couple dozen classic, exotic and muscle cars fatally shot himself the morning of the blaze, officials said.

At around 2:40 a.m. on Saturday, Monrovia firefighters and police responded to the warehouse blaze, which left one Arcadia fireman with second- and third-degree burns, according to Monrovia Police Sgt. William Burkhalter.

During the investigation that morning, authorities discovered that a silver Porsche was taken from the warehouse.

After determining a suspect, later identified by coroner officials as Schuyler Shelby Funk, Monrovia investigators asked Glendale police to check if the car was parked at Funk’s Glendale home in the 300 block of Wonderview Drive, according to Glendale Police Sgt. Robert William.

Glendale police found the Porsche parked in the driveway, along with two other cars registered to Funk, after which Monrovia police began writing a warrant to search the home, William said.

However, before the warrant could be served, Glendale police were called to the home by Funk’s grandmother, who had reportedly found him dead in the garage with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Funk was pronounced dead at 9:25 a.m., according to Ed Winter, spokesman for the Los Angeles County coroner’s office.

Investigators were working to determine the cause of the blaze, as well as a motive.

A damage estimate was not immediately available.

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Alene Tchekmedyian, [email protected]

Twitter: @atchek