Arsonist dies in court after sentencing

**Chalet** · June 30th, 2012, 11:48 AM

Shocking moment a ruined millionaire collapsed and DIED in court after 'taking pill' as he was found guilty of torching his $3million home

Full video in court - see around 7:00 minutes

[YOUTUBE]tBkoj-183W0[/YOUTUBE]

A horrified court room looked on today as a man who had just been convicted of burning down his $3.5 million mansion collapsed and died in front of them.

Michael Marin, 53, was found guilty of arson by a jury in Maricopa County Superior Court. He appeared shocked and closed his eyes as the verdict was read before appearing to put something in his mouth and wash it down with liquid in a plastic water bottle.

In the shocking court room video, he then fell to the floor a few minutes later in convulsions. Mr Marin was taken to a hospital in Phoenix, Arizona, where he was pronounced dead.

Last resort: After being found guilty of burning down his own home and facing years in jail, Michael Marin appeared to swallow a substance in the Arizona courtroom

Emergency: The 53-year-old was stretchered out of the court in Phoenix minutes later but died in hospital

When Marin's trial began in May, prosecutors said he could face 16 years in prison if he was convicted.

Marin burned down his Phoenix mansion on July 5, 2009 after it failed to sell at a charity auction.

Fire Department investigators determined the fire was deliberate after finding several points of origin throughout the sprawling 6,600 sq ft home with four garages.

Marin later told authorities that he had escaped after setting the fire by climbing from the second floor using a rope ladder and wearing a scuba-diving suit, according toFox.

Distress: Marin, a father of four and a grandfather, faced up to 16 years in prison after a jury found him guilty of arson

Ashen-faced: Marin, a former Wall Street trader, was found guilty of torching his $3.5million mansion because he could not afford the mortgage

No one was injured in the blaze but the charge of committing arson of an occupied structure holds the same number of years in prison in Arizona as second-degree murder.

Prosecutors claimed Marin set fire to his house in desperation because he could no longer pay the mortgage.

Toxicology tests would be carried out on the 53-year-old's body along with the water bottle he drank from.

Marin, a father of four and grandfather of two, attended Yale Law School. He was an ex-Wall Street trader who enjoyed collecting art including Picasso sketches and described himself as a 'careful thrill seeker' to the Phoenix New Times after scaling Mount Everest and trips into the jungles of south-east Asian.

Desperation: Ex-Wall Street trader Michael Marin set up an elaborate arson plan, involving escape with scuba-diving gear, when he could no longer pay the mortgage on his mansion

Destruction: Marin had tried to auction off his mansion in Arizona but had no bidders

Blaze: The ruined millionaire concocted a story of how he had escaped the fire but fire crews found several points of origin pointing to an arson attack

Read more: Arsonist Michael Marin, 53, collapses and dies in Phoenix court after being found guilty | Mail Online

**fgg** · June 30th, 2012, 11:55 AM

i saw this on the news the other day. i wonder what he took and how he got it.

**Chalet** · June 30th, 2012, 11:59 AM

I was thinking Cyanide. Burns your throat and esophagus makes you cough up and that's it. At least that's what happens in the movies.

**Sarzy** · June 30th, 2012, 12:03 PM

^ That's what I thought too - cyanide.

**Quazar** · June 30th, 2012, 01:09 PM

Watching that video gave me the chills. You know the person is going to die and you're watching the moments leading up to this.

**BoogsBun** · June 30th, 2012, 01:48 PM

It sounds like Cyanide to me. I asked MrBoogs, and cyanide can be made at home, relatively easy.

**Seapharris7** · June 30th, 2012, 08:27 PM

So... I get that his life was probably stressful, since I've lost my home to foreclosure & know how heartbreaking that can be, and having a charge of arson on your record is probably a pretty bad thing...

but they hadn't even gotten to the sentencing had they? Or fines? He took, presumably cyanide, as soon as the verdict was read. That's horrible. Life can get pretty shitty sometimes, but it does go on. Curious to know who was all in the audience of the courtroom... media? Family? The insurance agents?

**Kat Scorp** · June 30th, 2012, 08:50 PM

Originally Posted by Seapharris7

but they hadn't even gotten to the sentencing had they? Or fines? He took, presumably cyanide, as soon as the verdict was read. That's horrible. Life can get pretty shitty sometimes, but it does go on. Curious to know who was all in the audience of the courtroom... media? Family? The insurance agents?

No one was injured in the blaze but the charge of committing arson of an occupied structure holds the same number of years in prison in Arizona as second-degree murder.

I don't think life would have gone on quite so well for a 50+, financially failing adventurer/traveller who was facing about 10 in the clink.

I was shocked to see how he died because I was under the impression that cyanide is something you slip under the tongue that kills quickly and painlessly. It looked like he was in serious respiratory pain, and having read Chalet's post I'm now better informed, but startled.

**Seapharris7** · June 30th, 2012, 09:01 PM

In the movies it appears the spies always pop the pill & foam at the mouth, maybe a little coughing, but die relatively quickly. Here I think he takes it around the 2 min mark & starts coughing & convulsing around 7-8 mins. 5 minutes to take affect in "real life" I'll buy - plus, if it's like Boogs said, he managed to make it himself @ home, maybe he got some of the dosage off... maybe making it take longer to produce the desired effects.

Still... seems he could have swallowed his pride & sold some of his stuff to pay his mortgage, or just sucked it up & downsized. But, no, he wanted the "easy" way out & to come out on top. And the scuba suit? REALLY? He didnt think someone might find that a little suspicious??

**McJag** · July 1st, 2012, 11:20 AM

The practical side of me wishes he had just done this in the first place and saved everyone a lot of trouble.

**WhateverLolaWants** · July 2nd, 2012, 09:37 AM

Very Madame Bovary...

**stef** · July 2nd, 2012, 10:27 AM

Originally Posted by Seapharris7

In the movies it appears the spies always pop the pill & foam at the mouth, maybe a little coughing, but die relatively quickly. Here I think he takes it around the 2 min mark & starts coughing & convulsing around 7-8 mins. 5 minutes to take affect in "real life" I'll buy - plus, if it's like Boogs said, he managed to make it himself @ home, maybe he got some of the dosage off... maybe making it take longer to produce the desired effects.

Still... seems he could have swallowed his pride & sold some of his stuff to pay his mortgage, or just sucked it up & downsized. But, no, he wanted the "easy" way out & to come out on top. And the scuba suit? REALLY? He didnt think someone might find that a little suspicious??

i don't get that either. and if he attended law school, he must've known beforehand what he was getting himself into when he set his house on fire.

but even though it was a stupid move, this:

No one was injured in the blaze but the charge of committing arson of an occupied structure holds the same number of years in prison in Arizona as second-degree murder.

is so disproportionate, especially if you consider no one was injured and it was his own home. that's way different than e.g. setting your office building with 500 co-workers on fire.