Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Man charged in deadly blaze
Accused of setting fire at bathhouse that killed two people
Justin Rosdobutko
Justin Rosdobutko often told family members of his dream to become a Winnipeg firefighter. Now the 25-year-old man is sitting in a jail cell, accused of setting a blaze at a city bathhouse that killed two people.
"To say this is a bit of a surprise would be an understatement," his uncle, Jamey Rosdobutko, told the Free Press Wednesday from his home in Thunder Bay, Ont.. "As ironic as it is, he was looking to become a fireman."
Police arrested Justin Rosdobutko Tuesday night following an extensive investigation of the deadly Oct. 11 fire at the Aquarius Men's Bath on Notre Dame Avenue. Steven Yablonski, 23, of Winnipeg, and Robert Clark, 62, of Saskatchewan, were both killed. Yablonski was a well-known local drag queen and performer.
Justin Rosdobutko has been charged with two counts of manslaughter -- suggesting the killing was neither planned nor intentional. Police said Wednesday there is no evidence indicating the crime is hate-motivated.
Justin Rosdobutko is a father to a five-year-old girl, who lives with her mother. He identified himself online as an employee at a local packaging company and recently returned to school, according to his uncle. He was living with his own mother in an apartment on Strauss Drive. His father and older brother also live in the city, while his elderly grandparents live in Kenora.
"He's a good person, a loving and caring father. He's not some irresponsible punk, that's always been our impression," said his uncle. Family members say they don't know what brought Justin Rosdobutko to the bathhouse.
A source told the Free Press the evening of the fire, Justin Rosdobutko came to the business and rented a locker, which is on the basement level of the bathhouse. The fire occurred in a second-floor room of the bathhouse.
Visitors frequently roam throughout the house to socialize with each other and have sex in bedrooms there. Witnesses on scene the night of the fire told the Free Press a visitor overheard a man telling another customer he wanted to set fire to the bathhouse. Magazines might have been used to light the fire, said the source.
"I don't think that whatever happened here was intentional," Jamey Rosdobutko said Wednesday. "I know Justin is a smoker, so it's possible this could have been a careless cigarette."
Police did not confirm if Justin Rosdobutko was at the bathhouse with another friend.
"It's my understanding he may have been there with someone else," said Const. Jason Michalyshen. He didn't know if there was a relationship between Justin Rosdobutko and the victims, but said the suspect is not believed to have targeted the two men who died. Police did not comment on the role drugs and alcohol may have played.
"It's very upsetting knowing two people who were innocent lost their lives. It's very sad," said Jamey Rosdobutko.
The fire caused about $500,000 damage to the property at 457 Notre Dame Ave. The bathhouse's owner, Somchai Pengpharsuks, lost another business to arson in 1999, the King and Alexander Steam Baths.
"My heart feels for the two people that passed away," Pengpharsuks told the Free Press after the fire. "I wish it was me instead of them. We tried to make a safe place to come... and I feel like I couldn't protect them."
www.mikeoncrime.com gabrielle.giroday@freepress.mb.ca
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition October 29, 2009 B1
-
WFP Hockey
Download our new hockey app for the iPhone for Winnipeg Jets updates
-
Editor's Bulletin
Sign up for daily bulletins from editor Margo Goodhand
-
Winnipeg Jets
All things NHL on our Jets landing page
-
Twitter
Follow our reporters and our news feeds on Twitter
-
News Cafe
Check out the menu, read our blog posts or get info on coming events
-
Facebook Fanpage
Follow our Facebook Fanpage for story links, contests and special events
Ads by Google
- Back to Top
- Return to Local
Poll
Most Popular
- Piers Morgan blasts 'gruesome' Madonna
- RCMP receptionist told Stobbe wife was dead
- Cabela's to open massive store just west of IKEA site
- Steinbach booms to No. 3 city in province
- RCMP receptionist told Stobbe wife dead
- Juror dismissed in second-degree murder trial of Mark Stobbe
- Should infants be allowed in the House of Commons?
- No comfort in trade talk: Veteran Thorburn says closely knit club well worth keeping together
- Search is on for man seen leaving the scene where two Alberta Mounties were shot
- US teen gets life in prison for killing 9-year-old; called the murder "pretty enjoyable"
- Piers Morgan blasts 'gruesome' Madonna
- Clothing chain pulls Caterpillar boots to protest closure of London, Ont., plant
- Three winning tickets sold for Friday's $50 million Lotto Max jackpot
- Woman's car stolen at gunpoint at St. Vital mall, police say
- Eleven people killed after truck hits van in southwestern Ontario
- 'This is so silly': Mom and Dad tell story of baby Zade, born on side of Highway 59
- Stobbe said slaying during shopping trip 'strange': sister-in-law
- Tactical squad storms St. Vital house
- Woman sexually assaulted during noon-hour in Exchange District
- Restaurant Dubrovnik may be closed for good
- Do you smoke marijuana?
- Driver dead after SUV goes over Disraeli Bridge
- George Clooney's prank could end Pitt's career
- Piers Morgan blasts 'gruesome' Madonna
- Tina Maze strips down to her sports bra to send out underwear message: 'Not your business'
- Clothing chain pulls Caterpillar boots to protest closure of London, Ont., plant
- Minor earthquake strikes near Manitoba
- Car's plunge off Disraeli fatal
- Two children, two women die in fire
- Kate Beckinsale's weight fears over Underworld catsuit
- Tassimo brewers and espresso packages recalled amid rupture, burn concerns
- Cabela's to open massive store just west of IKEA site
- Fighting fire with knowledge
- Spain mourns death of Catalan painter, sculptor Antoni Tapies, top contemporary art figure
- Pardon application fee to quadruple later this month despite complaints
- Our 'true champion'
- Harper driven by libertarian ideology, not reality
- OMG! Candy kings back at it
- Original Joe's, Elephant & Castle expanding
- Flood reviews launched
- Tassimo brewers and espresso packages recalled amid rupture, burn concerns
- Swedish bunny's sheep herding skills becomes click-monster on YouTube
- League encourages hazing secrecy
- Cabela's to open massive store just west of IKEA site
- Harper driven by libertarian ideology, not reality
- Northern fishing lodge destroyed by fire
- Police target drivers talking on cellphones, texting
- Obama torn by conflicting allies
- 'This is so silly': Mom and Dad tell story of baby Zade, born on side of Highway 59
- Fighting fire with knowledge
- Minor earthquake strikes near Manitoba
- Paddler Starkell was modern-day voyageur
- Tassimo brewers and espresso packages recalled amid rupture, burn concerns
- Driver dead after SUV goes over Disraeli Bridge
- Car's plunge off Disraeli fatal
- Canadian woman 'badly injured' in Mexico, local media report apparent beating
- Winnipeg mother watches as car stolen with child inside
- Swedish bunny's sheep herding skills becomes click-monster on YouTube
- League encourages hazing secrecy
- The cost of calories: It's expensive to eat healthily
The Winnipeg Free Press is not accepting comments on this story.