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June 16--MANKATO -- A Mankato man, who was being kept from going back into his smoke-filled house, was arrested Thursday morning after he allegedly kicked a police officer.
A 911 call alerted Mankato police officers and firefighters to a possible fire at a residence in the 100 block of Gwynn Avenue at about 12:30 a.m. Thursday. The first officer to arrive at the scene reported seeing the house full of smoke and a man walking around inside.
The man living there, 60-year-old Kent Alan Haugum, had been cooking chicken and potatoes in the oven, Cmdr. Jeremy Clifton said. The food was burning and filling the house with smoke.
After Haugum was taken outside, officers reported he appeared intoxicated because he was falling down and his speech was slurred, Clifton said. He also attempted to go back into the house three times before he was physically restrained. At that point, Haugum allegedly struggled with officers and kicked one of the officers in the leg.
He was arrested for fourth-degree assault of a police officer, which is a felony. Haugum was too intoxicated to be accepted at the jail, so he was brought to a medical facility, Clifton said.
There was no fire, but the house was damaged by smoke. Firefighters removed the burning food and used fans to clear the smoke out of the residence.
