WINNIPEG -- A 25-year-old man who had told family members he dreamed of becoming a firefighter has been accused of deliberately setting a blaze that killed two people at a Winnipeg bathhouse.
"To say this is a bit of a surprise would be an understatement," Jamey Rosdobutko of Thunder Bay, Ont., said Wednesday of the arrest of his nephew, Justin Rosdobutko.
"He was looking to become a fireman."
The Oct. 11 fire at Aquarius Men's Bath killed Steven Yablonski, 23, a well-known local performer and drag queen, and Robert Clark, 62, of Saskatchewan.
Justin Rosdobutko has been charged with two counts of manslaughter. He identified himself online as an employee at a local packaging company and recently returned to school, according to his uncle.
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Jamey Rosdobutko said his nephew is also is the father of a young girl.
"He's a good person, a loving and caring father," said the uncle. "He's not some irresponsible punk, that's always been our impression."
Family members say they don't know what brought Rosdobutko to the co-ed bathhouse, where customers come to have sex and socialize.
