Smiling Arsonist Burns Yoga Studio: 'It Was Kind of a Celebration'

Congratulations to arsonist Nancy Duarte who achieved a a state of pure positive vibes and gave the cheeriest mugshot you’ll ever see after attempting to burn down American Power Yoga in Dallas, Texas this weekend.

Since the mugshot began getting media attention, Duarte—who is still in jail—has been accepting non-stop interviews.

“Most people can’t understand the smiling mugshot,” she told CBS 11 News, explaining that her grin was an attempt to let go of her anger.

“I thought it was going to make me happy…to burn the place that had brought me so much pain and suffering,” she added.

Duarte tells CBS that she was frustrated after a man associated with the studio “kept hitting on me and kept trying to make me the girlfriend on the side…Even as I’m walking out the door, he kept trying to put his hands on me, and I was like, ‘No!'”

Her story changed slightly and got more elaborate throughout the day as she talked to reporters from varying outlets. But no matter the details, the end result is the same—Nancy went full Waiting to Exhale on American Power Yoga:

She insists she had no intention of hurting anyone, but firefighters had to evacuate nearby businesses Saturday. Brad Dickinson was downstairs at the Pocket Sandwich Theatre waiting for a comedy show to begin.

“She was taking matches and lighting them and tossing them,” Dickinson said.

Despite what Duarte says she intended, Dickinson points out the entire shopping center could have gone up in flames…Nonetheless, Duarte says the only regret she has is that the studio didn’t burn.

American Power Yoga suffered minor damages and will return to its regular class schedule immediately. According to a spokesperson, “the studio has been under new ownership since November, and until Saturday they were unaware of any dispute” between Duarte and anyone associated with the business.