Authorities in California charged a 29-year-old man with starting a deadly fire that erupted into the most destructive blaze in Los Angeles history and destroyed much of the wealthy Pacific Palisades neighborhood, officials announced Wednesday.
Federal law enforcement officials accuse 29-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht of lighting a fire on New Year's Day that was initially extinguished by fire crews, but continued to smolder underground before reigniting during high winds, acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said during a news conference.
Rinderknecht fled the scene of the original fire, but returned to the same trail to watch it burn, according to Essayli.
"He left as soon as he saw the fire trucks were headed to the location," Essayli said. "He turned around and went back up there. And he took some video and, and watched them fight the fire."
Rinderknecht also made several 911 calls to report the fire, according to a criminal complaint.
Rinderknecht was arrested in Florida on Tuesday and is due to appear in court Wednesday. He faces charges including malicious destruction by means of a fire. Aisha Nash, the federal public defender assigned to represent Rinderknecht, has not responded to Associated Press requests for comment.
Residents said fireworks were launched to celebrate the new year, and investigators from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Los Angeles Fire Department have been studying whether embers from that earlier fire could have smoldered and reignited under strong winds.
"Today's arrest of 29-year-old Florida resident Jonathan Rinderknecht marks an important step toward uncovering how the horrific Palisades Fire began and bringing closure to the thousands of Californians whose lives were upended," California Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote in a statement after the news conference.
"This tragedy will never be forgotten — lives were lost, families torn apart, and entire communities forever changed — and there must be accountability. We thank the U.S. Department of Justice and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for their thorough investigation into this fire and for confirming the indisputable facts on the ground.
"The state will continue to fully support this investigation and we look forward to the findings of the independent after-action report we've commissioned from the nation's leading fire safety researchers."
The Palisades Fire scorched more than 6,000 acres, destroyed over 120 structures, and caused an estimated $1.4 billion in damages, making it one of the most destructive wildfires in Los Angeles history.
Sources said the young suspect had access to the area where the fireworks were allegedly lit and was placed under surveillance earlier this year.
At one point, he was detained and questioned by investigators but later released.
Over the past several months, the ATF conducted controlled burns near the suspected point of origin to study how embers might have reignited and to test fire detection systems, officials said.
Investigators still have not determined the cause of that blaze or the Eaton Fire, which broke out the same day in the community of Altadena and killed 18 people.
Both fires burned for days, reducing block after block of entire neighborhoods to gray and black debris.
An outside review released in September found that a lack of resources and outdated policies for sending emergency alerts led to delayed evacuation warnings.
The report commissioned by Los Angeles County supervisors said a series of weaknesses, including "outdated policies, inconsistent practices and communications vulnerabilities," hampered the county's response.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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