After suspected arson destroys St. Paul Karen-owned body shop, community rallies to rebuild

Since it opened its doors in St. Paul nearly a decade ago, SKD Auto Tek was more than a car repair shop.

It provided a lifeline for its owner, Soe Doh, and his 15 fellow Karen refugees who worked there. It was a community hub of sorts for the members of the Karen community who resettled in the Twin Cities after escaping Myanmar, formerly Burma, from ethnic cleansing.

Now, after a devastating suspected arson destroyed Soe Doh’s business, the community is rallying around him in efforts to rebuild the shop.

Investigators believe the Jan. 11 fire at the business at 80 Cottage Av. W. may have been intentionally set after the St. Paul Fire Department responded to a call about a commercial building fire around 5:30 a.m., two hours after the fire started, according to the incident report.

Soe Doh — traditionally Karen people do not have a last name — said his neighbor called him that morning saying his building was on fire.

“I’m like well you’re kidding me. My building burned. How?” Soe Doh said. “So I rush all the way to my shop and when I look at what’s going on, I was, you know, almost having a meltdown.”

Sixty firefighters worked several hours to contain the blaze. The shop was completely destroyed.

A St. Paul Fire Department spokesperson said the fire destroyed the main building and another building directly behind it.

At first glance, the building looks untouched. The SKD Auto Tek sign in bright red still hangs on the yellow steel siding, but the damage soon becomes obvious.

Ceilings are caved in or completely burned, ash blankets the floor and nails protrude from every surface. Cars inside the shop are charred black. The office door is melted shut, and a burnt smell still lingers inside the building nearly a month later.

Despite the damage, work carried on outside the building last week. Po, a mechanic who has worked for the company for seven years, worked on a truck and recalled how his co-worker first Facetimed him to show him the damage.

“I said ‘No, no,’” he said, tears in his eyes. “This is where I make money for my family.”

Soe Doh said a Ring camera recorded at 3:10 a.m. two strangers carrying red gas cans and leaving several minutes later without the gas cans.

“So that’s when I know this was not accident,” he said. “Someone set it up intentionally.”

In between the main building and the shed behind, a portion of the chain-link fence surrounding the shop was cut down. Po said the arsonists cut the fence before starting a fire in the shop and near the office.

The Department of Safety and Inspections condemned the building on Jan. 14 for vacancy, according to the report.

“[It took] me 10 years to get to where I’m at today,” Soe Doh said. “And it just take an individual or two like within minutes and they ruin everything I have built for.”

Soe Doh, who opened the shop with his brother, Kaw Hai, said he plans to rebuild in the same location. He said moving his shop would be inconvenient for his customers, mostly immigrants, who live in the area, and he would lose his community’s support.

Kaw Hai said they started the business to support their community since non-English speaking immigrants are often taken advantage of by other mechanics.

“It’s so hard on my brother, he works hard day and night,” Kaw Hai said.

The shop housed special equipment, like diagnostic tools, computers, tire machines, a balancer, air compressor and other auto repair tools. Soe Doh said the total cost of damage to his equipment is nearly $150,000 and insurance covers only $50,000.

“Just a diagnostic tool that was like $7,000 already,” Soe Doh said.

Soe Doh moved to the Twin Cities in 2013 from San Francisco, where he grew up and earned his degree in corporate finance. Before, he lived in a refugee camp in Thailand.

He has long been involved in helping fellow members of the Karen community, and served on the board of directors for the Karen Organization of Minnesota (KOM), a nonprofit social service agency supporting Minnesota immigrants and refugees, for eight years. When he served on the board, he suggested a commercial driver’s license (CDL) program for refugees as an alternative to minimum wage work.

“They can get into trucking and make good money,” Soe Doh said. “You know $20 plus.”

Soe Doh said after KOM started the CDL program they came to him for additional support. He offered ride-alongs to learning drivers.

“They can go with a current truck drive in my company and see what is the day to day,” Soe Doh said. “And so some of them, you know, really, really like it.”

The KOM organized an online fundraiser to offset additional costs for tools and equipment not covered by insurance.

“It’s our turn to show up for him and his employees to help this important St. Paul small business get back on track,” the fundraiser read.

Alice Buckner, the development director at KOM, said Soe Doh originally did not want a fundraiser out of pride, but then realized the value of his business stretches beyond himself to his employees and community.

“I’m not asking for handouts because as long as I can breathe, as long as I still living, then I still be able to work to gain back what I lost,” Soe Doh said. “I just rather focus and make money on my own because I’m capable.”