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Connecticut authorities Tuesday said they are still unsure whether Zappos founder Tony Hsieh accidentally or intentionally set the fire that killed him.

The troubled online-shoe-company creator perished from smoke inhalation while in a storage shed on a female pal’s New London property in November — and authorities said in a report that it is still unclear whether Hsieh meant to or may have mistakenly ignited the blaze with maybe a tossed cigarette or carelessly placed candle, possibly in a booze- or drug-fueled haze.

Hsieh had gone out to the shed in a fit to sleep after getting into an argument with the woman about keeping her house clean, another friend told investigators.

“Through the course of this investigation, the five investigators were not able to eliminate all the potential ignition sources, and as a result, have classified this fire as ‘undetermined,’ ” New London Fire Marshal Vernon Skau said in a written statement, according to the Hartford Courant. 

“In the event that new information is learned, this investigation can be reopened.”


  Tony Hsieh speaks during a luncheon on Sept. 30, 2013. Cory Morse/The Grand Rapids Press via AP Tony Hsieh speaks during a luncheon on Sept. 30, 2013. Cory Morse/The Grand Rapids Press via AP

Hsieh, a 46-year-old multimillionaire wunderkind, had been planning to enter rehab in the hours before his death, pals told the Wall Street Journal last month.

With AP

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