Fire captain accused of stealing book from burning house. Who do you believe?

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A veteran D.C. fire captain dispatched to a two-alarm house fire in Northwest Washington Monday night has been criminally charged with stealing a book on airplanes from the burning dwelling, according to police and fire officials.

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He said he found a book near the front entrance of the burned house in the 3000 block of Gates Road, in Forest Hills, and moved it to safe location to preserve for the homeowner. The fire broke out about 7 p.m. and caused extensive damage to the house. No one was injured. “Try to do a good thing and get jammed,” Noznesky said. “There was a large book near the front. I move it from inside maybe 60 feet from the house. Somebody, I guess, saw that and didn’t like it. I never stole anything from there. I didn’t even know what the book was about. Why the police charged, I have no idea whatsoever. I thought I was doing the right thing.” Noznesky said that he doesn’t get along with one of the fire officials who was at the scene. He said he told the homeowner that he had saved the book. He said other expensive artwork and furniture was destroyed. The captain said he was confronted by police, the fire chief and other officials at the scene.

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The D.C. police report says that one person saw Nozensky “remove the listed property from inside the location, conceal the listed property in a black jacket and take the listed property to the fire engine.” The report says the book was titled, “Airline Visual Identity: 1945-1975.” Its publisher describes the book as chronicling airlines through advertising campaigns. Police estimate its worth at $100.

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