Talk about a slow burn.
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Tattoo artist and reality TV personality Kat Von D is in the hot seat after being accused of burning down a family’s Hollywood Hills property 16 years ago.
In a series of TikTok videos, content creator Teva Dresbach alleged that Von D caused a destructive house fire while living in his mother’s home years ago. Dresbach, whose mother owned the property and later died from cancer, has been documenting the house’s renovation on his “Hollywood Hills Castle” profile, which has over 80,000 followers.
Per PEOPLE, in the TikTok videos, Dresbach claims his mother rented her property to Kat Von D, now 44, in 2008. Dresbach alleges that during a visit, he witnessed Von D’s “bizarre” lifestyle, noting there were “candles everywhere.” Dresbach claims the house later burned down and that arson investigators determined the cause was a “candle fire.”
“There were holes throughout the hardwood floors, smoke damage in the entire home, the only reason that it stood was because it’s made from stone,” the content creator alleges.
Content Creator Seemingly Blames Kat Von D in Part For His Mother’s Health Decline
Dresbach claims his family later settled with Von D (real name Katherine von Drachenberg), but the deal allegedly included a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) that prohibited his mother from discussing the incident. Because Teva was a minor at the time, he says he was not required to sign the NDA, allowing him to speak out about it now.
Dresbach went on to make a bold speculation, essentially alleging Von D played a role in his mother’s declining health.
“I want to be abundantly clear about something: my mom passed due to cancer,” he said in a June 11 video. “Our family believes that the stress of the fires and the restoration process and the lawsuit is truly what brought it back with such vengeance.”
When you have to deal with people like this, it really does strip off years,” Dresbach added. “I believe that I watched that happen with my own mom in real time.”
Kat Von D Pushes Back at Allegations of Burning Down a House
However, Von D pushed back against Dresbach’s claims in a June 12 TikTok video, sharing what appeared to be screenshots of past communications she had with Teva’s mother while renting the home.
“This week, I’ve been accused of burning down a house and contributing to the death of a woman with cancer,” the former LA Ink star explained. “I want to be as respectful as I can in this video, but it’s also very hard not to be disheartened by this man’s accusations.”
In the video, Von D confirmed she had rented the Los Angeles home from Dresbach’s mother, Deborah, over 16 years ago. However, she asserts she was not present when the fire occurred. Von D claims an “electrical fire” started in the basement due to “faulty wires.” She alleges she had notified Deborah about the wiring issues. However, the homeowner only sent her “untrained husband” to fix it.
Kat Von D: ‘I Didn’t Set the House on Fire’
Von D, who says she also lost important items in the fire, denies making Deborah sign an NDA. Instead, she claims it was a standard document she gave landlords to prevent them from leaking information to tabloids. Von D also called Dresbach’s assertion that the stress from the fire, renovations, and subsequent lawsuit worsened his mother’s health “unfair.”
“I can’t imagine what it would be like to lose a mother that you’re so close with. At the same time, I didn’t set the house on fire,” Von D said. “This was a tragedy, and it was out of both of our control.”
“I would never wish that on anybody,” she added.
In May 2012, State Farm filed a lawsuit against Von D. It alleged that she negligently caused a fire on November 21, 2010, by lighting multiple candles. The documents, obtained by PEOPLE, state that the insurance company paid out $909,199.49 but later determined Von D was liable. State Farm settled and dropped the lawsuit in June 2013, with undisclosed terms.