Tattoo shop owner sets fire to his business, dies in crash moments later, WI cops say

The owner of a tattoo shop died in a head-on crash minutes after he started a fire to his business, Wisconsin authorities say.

Officials in Madison say Ted Heffner, 71, was killed in the motorcycle crash at 6:35 a.m. on Tuesday, July 18. It came just three minutes after Madison firefighters were dispatched to Custom Tattooing Arts Studios for reports of a blaze.

Firefighters observed “heavy fire” at the front of the building and found no one inside when they extinguished the fire. A gas can and bottle of lighter fluid was found at the business, leading investigators to believe the fire was intentionally started, according to the fire department.

Video from a neighboring business obtained by NBC15 shows the blaze begin as someone leaves on a motorcycle.

That person was Heffner, who police said drove away on a motorcycle and intentionally drove down an off-ramp into oncoming traffic. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

No one else was injured in the fire or crash, authorities said. The fire caused $300,000 worth of damage to the building, officials said.

Heffner also lived at the tattoo shop, WMTV reported.

”He’s a big bike guy from the ‘70s, so kind of intimidating, but deep down he was a really nice guy and he cared for people too and he loved his work,” one of his customers, Ron Gratz, told WMTV.

His granddaughter described him in a GoFundMe as “a wild character with stories miles long.”

This story was originally published July 20, 2023 at 2:33 PM with the headline "Tattoo shop owner sets fire to his business, dies in crash moments later, WI cops say."