Why Carpets Were Burned in Adam Lanza's Home

The house that once belonged to Newtown shooter Adam Lanza and his mother just changed hands, but don't expect to see any of their old belongings up for sale as creepy memorabilia. The bank that transferred ownership to Newtown at no cost made sure of that by burning everything inside, reports the Hartford Courant. "There is nothing left but the light fixtures," says an exec with Hudson Savings Bank of New Jersey. "We burned everything from the carpets to any personal effects," he says. "We didn't want anything from that house showing up for sale on eBay two years from now."

Another unusual part of the transfer: The bank first hired a man known as the "Master of Disaster" in the real estate business to go through the house and help figure out what to do with it, reports the Stamford Advocate. Randall Bell earned that nickname by helping to sell the homes in the OJ Simpson and Jon Benet Ramsey cases. He says the bank probably could have sold the house eventually for somewhere under its $500,000 assessment, but "no one was interested in money" given the circumstances. Instead the bank gave it to the town, which will decide its fate—but not immediately. "I want to give the families and the community a couple weeks of peace around the anniversary and the holidays," says First Selectman Patricia Llodra. (A recent report detailed missed opportunities to help Adam Lanza.)