Inset: Brian Jeffrey Shelleby (Allegheny County Jail). Background: Castle Shannon residence that Shelleby is accused of setting ablaze, resulting in the death of his teenage daughter (WTAE).
A man from Pennsylvania is accused of dousing a home with gasoline using a five-gallon can and setting it on fire, which led to the death of his 19-year-old daughter and injuries to his wife.
Brian Jeffrey Shelleby, aged 46, faces charges of criminal homicide, arson, and risking a catastrophe, according to court records. Emergency services received numerous 911 calls just before 10 a.m. on Sunday reporting a fire in the vicinity of the 800 block of Corbett Drive in Castle Shannon, located near Pittsburgh.
Upon arrival, responders found flames raging from the house. According to an arrest affidavit accessed by Law&Crime, two individuals were trapped inside: Shelleby’s wife and their 19-year-old daughter, Lakyn Shelleby. The wife managed to escape, but firefighters were unable to locate the daughter in time. The teenager was later discovered unresponsive within the home and declared dead.
Investigators interviewed the wife, who explained she had informed her husband that he could not remain in the house due to their separation. He allegedly replied by threatening to “burn the house down.” Subsequently, he reportedly retrieved a five-gallon gasoline container and spread the fuel across both levels of the home.
The wife screamed for her daughter to run out of the home. She said as she ran out, “the house exploded into flames,” the affidavit said.
Brian Shelleby stayed at the scene and was arrested by police. After receiving his Miranda rights, he allegedly confessed to starting the fire. He reportedly claimed he was in conversation with his wife, trying to “persuade her to let him remain,” though she refused, insisting he leave, per the affidavit. At that point, he allegedly took the gas can from the garage and spread it throughout the house.
The fire was extremely fast-moving, neighbors told local NBC affiliate WPXI.
“It took about 13 seconds for the whole house to go up in flames,” neighbor Patrick Funwela told the TV station. “I ran outside and saw the windows were all blown out. A gas tank was sitting in the middle of the street.”
Funwela and other neighbors tried to rescue the teen.
“We broke the window, climbed up the ladder, screaming for Lakyn — no words, nothing,” he said. “The smoke was unbelievable. It was the thickest black smoke I have ever seen.”
Lakyn Shelleby was a second-year student at the University of Pittsburgh and a 2024 graduate of Keystone Oaks High School, WPXI reported. Her friends gathered Monday night to remember her at a vigil.
“She was so smart, and she could kick down the doors with her charisma,” Alexandria Kelley, a childhood friend, told WPXI.
