Fire at Beyoncé, Jay-Z-owned mansion in New Orleans likely was arson, police say
A one-alarm fire that broke out inside a historic mansion reportedly owned by Beyoncé and Jay-Z is being investigated as simple arson, according to New Orleans police.
Authorities responded Wednesday to a fire in the 1500 block of Harmony Street, nestled in the city’s Historic Garden District. The home was vacant at the time and no injuries were reported, police said.
A smoke alarm inside the 8,880-square-foot property went off around 6:20 p.m., The New Orleans Advocate reported, citing fire officials. They’ve been tight-lipped about what they suspect to be the cause of the fire. However, a source familiar with the investigation told the newspaper the blaze appeared to have started in the kitchen.
Firefighters found books in the oven, the source said, and a gas can was also found on the property, according to The Advocate.
McClatchy News reached out to the New Orleans Fire Department on Thursday and was awaiting a response.
Around that same time, police received a call about a suspicious person on nearby Saint Charles Avenue, a spokesperson for New Orleans police told McClatchy News on Friday in a statement. In the course of investigating, police said they determined the suspicious-person call was linked to the house fire on Harmony Street, which was later ruled as a simple arson.
“The report for this incident is still pending approval, so we cannot provide additional details at this time,” the police statement read.
Neighbors who spoke on the condition of anonymity said the sprawling Spanish Baroque-style mansion has been vacant for some time and that police suspected someone had broken in and set fire to it, according to The Advocate.
Beyoncé and Jay-Z reportedly purchased the church-turned-mansion for $2.6 million in 2015, Realtor.com reported. The property has been linked to the singer’s Parkwood Entertainment company and is just blocks from a 100-year-old church she bought in 2015.
Her mother, Tina Knowles-Lawson, and sister, Solange Knowles, are also known to have properties in the area, the real estate website reported.
According to an online listing, the Harmony Street mansion boasts seven bedrooms and eight bathrooms, divided between a main residence and three apartments.
“The 3-story building has 26-foot high ceilings with great soothing natural light,” the listing reads. “Once you are in the building the rest of the world melts away.”
Neither the “Black Parade” singer nor her billionaire husband have commented on the fire as of Friday.
Authorities said the incident remains under investigation.
This story was originally published July 23, 2021 at 11:05 AM.