Photo by Sarah Anne Hughes.

A large building fire in Northeast D.C. was intentionally set by the resident who died inside his home, the Metropolitan Police Department said today.

Police say 46-year-old Christopher Christofi’s death has been ruled a suicide. Christofi lived in the four-unit building in the 1600 block of Isherwood Street NE. He was profiled by the post following the June 4th fire, which displaced the building’s other residents and killed several pets.

Christofi worked at a nonprofit group for 10 years and had just started a job as office manager of a downtown Washington governmental affairs and lobbying firm.

“He is a kind and gentle soul,” said Stephanie E. Silverman, who runs Venn Strategies, which hired Christofi a little more than a year ago. She described him as a “very private person” who “was sweet and kind to a fault.”

He loved his dog, took in stray cats and was a BMW enthusiast. Although he didn’t talk about his own life, those who worked for him said he made sure that his employees were satisfied.

The case was investigated by members of the Arson and Explosives Task Force, according to a release. The sound of an explosion was reported before the fire.