ARTICLE AD BOX
The owner of the Lutsen Resort Lodge on Lake Superior's North Shore has been arrested and charged with starting the fire that destroyed the iconic lodge nearly two years ago.
Bryce Campbell, 41, has been charged with three felony counts of arson, and one felony count of insurance fraud, for his alleged role in the massive blaze, according to the criminal complaint filed in state district court in Grand Marais.
Campbell, a Canadian citizen and resident who maintains a Two Harbors address, was arrested in Michigan, outside of Detroit, where he was on personal business. He was booked in the Oakland County, Mich., jail at about 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.
The complaint spells out in detail the serious financial troubles Campbell faced at the time the fire ripped through the historic resort in the early hours of Feb. 6, 2024. The lodge was completely destroyed, leaving only chimneys standing.
The criminal complaint also details Campbell’s suspicious behavior before the fire was reported, and in the immediate aftermath.
“This was a crime of selfishness,” said state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension superintendent Drew Evans.
“Bryce Campbell put his interests above the livelihood of his employees, the safety of the people that were in the building at the time and the community that were there, and all of the Minnesotans that loved Lutsen Lodge for generations across our state.”
The lodge was built in 1951, replacing the former structure that also burned in a fire. Designed by renowned St. Paul architect Edwin Lundie, it featured stone fireplaces and giant white pine log beams. Campbell purchased it for $6.75 million in 2018. He told investigators he subsequently sank $5 million into expansive renovations.
According to the complaint, Campbell was deeply in debt and owed hundreds of thousands of dollars to vendors and various other entities at the time of the fire.
Those debts included approximately $467,000 in past due invoices to over 80 vendors; $521,000 owed to Lutsen’s previous owners; $247,000 owed to townhome associations whose rental properties he managed; and $277,000 owed to Highmark Builders, which filed a mechanic’s lien on the property.
One business checking account showed a negative balance of more than $3,000. Others had balances of just $28 and $544.
Investigators also note that Campbell increased the amount the lodge was insured for twice before the fire, from about $8.5 million to $11 million in 2022, and again the following year to $13 million.
Email messages among staff at the lodge also show that Campbell was on the cusp of missing payroll, and was in discussions with a bank about a large loan to help pay some of his debts.
“What should I do?” begins one email from general manager Edward Vanegas to Campbell.
“There isn't any money available to do payroll next week and that is truly unfair to employees (me included),” he said. “We can't let employees work with the expectation of getting paid and then not pay them. That goes against my morals as a person and it's illegal as a company."
Suspicious behavior
The complaint, filed by Steven Kritzeck, special agent with the Minnesota BCA, also says that, Vanegas called Campbell 30 times between 1 and 2 a.m. after the fire had broken out, but the defendant did not answer.
Campbell’s husband, identified in the complaint as S.D., left a series of unanswered Facebook messages early that morning as well, including “the lobby is gone and the flames have moved to the 2nd floor.”
“The fire department is there,” S.D. said in another message. “Please wake up.” And he asked, “Bryce, where are you?”
A state Fire Marshall investigator said Campbell claimed that on the night of the fire, “he went home, bought a pizza from Dominos, and went to bed.” But in a later interview with insurance investigators, Campbell admitted he had stopped at the lodge on the night of the fire, shortly before midnight, to pick up items from his desk.
The complaint also details messages between S.D. and Campbell the week before the fire where Campbell replied “Just burn it” to messages about debt they owed.
Because of the fire’s complexity, investigators still don’t know precisely how it started, acknowledged State Fire Marshall Dan Krier.
”Our investigator was able to eliminate a number of sources, but there were still a few remaining, including the possibility of an intentionally set fire,” Krier said.
The investigation placed the fire’s origin in the lodge’s basement where the water heaters and boilers were located. Campbell had performed some maintenance on the equipment in the days leading up to the fire, which “surprised” Vanegas. Investigators also found a wrench wedged under the basement door that prevented it from being opened.
Investigators said a residue from a substance known as Swissmar fire gel was also found. Search history records on Campbell’s phone show he searched for “Sterno-fuel,” “Fondue fuel btu” and “swissmar” in the month before the fire.
Two days after the fire, Campbell submitted a Notice of Loss to his insurance company. In October, he submitted a sworn statement and an insurance claim totaling more than $16,000,000.
In describing the 22-month investigation, the BCA’s Evans said there was no single thing that led them to file charges this week.
“It was a totality of all the evidence finally culminating to the point where there was probable cause.”
Campbell is in the process of being extradited to Minnesota. Cook County Attorney Jeanne Peterson said they are just in the initial phases of the court process.
“The complaint is merely an allegation, and Mr. Campbell remains innocent until proven guilty. He has rights and is entitled to a jury of his peers.”
English (US) ·