Man under fraud investigation torches his home, kills himself

RENO -- A Carson City man under criminal investigation on allegations of fleecing an elderly neighbor out of hundreds of thousands of dollars took his own life after torching his house, authorities said Saturday.

After an all-day manhunt, Robert David McCleary Jr., 58, a house painter, was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound late Friday night. His body was found on a hill one-quarter mile above his house, which was destroyed by the 4:20 a.m. blaze earlier in the day, Carson City Sheriff Kenny Furlong said.

Written on a cinderblock wall outside the house was a neighbor's name and the message, "Thanks for the tip-off," the Nevada Appeal of Carson City reported. On a nearby pillar was written, "EEEEEHA."

Furlong said the meaning of the messages was unclear, but he speculated that McCleary burned the house and took his own life because the sheriff's investigation of him was coming to a head.

Among the allegations is that McCleary's $410,000 home was either paid off or purchased for him in 2004 with funds taken from a 93-year-old woman, whom he met while painting her house, the Nevada Appeal reported.

The neighbor named on the cinderblock wall at the house was not the 93-year-old woman, and the man told investigators that he didn't know the meaning of McCleary's message.

Witnesses told investigators that McCleary had earlier made it clear he didn't want authorities to seize his property and he didn't want to go to jail.

"I think what happened is we had an open investigation of him, and the charges could have been pretty damn serious," Furlong told The Associated Press . "To my knowledge a warrant had not been issued for his arrest, but it could have been shortly. His house may have been associated with the fraud.

"What we think, and this is our opinion, is he spent the day before (his death) developing a very elaborate method to ensure everything burned to the ground, so much so that within four minutes the house and detached garage were fully engulfed in flames. He told people that nobody was getting anything of his," the sheriff added.

Furlong said he now thinks McCleary hid out in the hills above his house all day, noting his two vehicles also were destroyed by the fire.

Officers from nearby counties assisted in the search for McCleary.