Man Reportedly Attempts To Set Fire To Tulsa Nursing Home With Flare Gun

A man is in custody Sunday evening after Tulsa police say he was attempting to set fire to a nursing home with a flare gun.

When the call came in to police, a witness said a man was trying to break in the facility and was setting small fires outside the building.

When officers arrived, they said the man was in the common area of the nursing home at 36th Street and Sheridan Road. He was making threats and was combative toward officers, refusing to comply with police orders, so they shot him with pepper balls, investigators said.

He was wearing only a pair of shorts when police arrived, but military-style clothing and a tactical load-bearing vest were found at the scene, according to officers at the scene.

Police told News On 6 the man has a military background and they believe the incident is related to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. He was not arrested, but is being transported to a nearby VA hospital.

Police told reporters they thought the man was determined to hurt someone inside the nursing home and that he claimed to believe the nursing home was some sort of facility for him to receive help.

No residents were reported injured.