Tag: arson

DEVELOPING: ATF Arson Investigators Descend on Hiking Trail at The Summit of Pacific Palisades

ATF arson investigators descended along a hiking trail at The Summit of the Pacific Palisades on Monday nearly one week after the fires erupted.

“Two prongs, one team will analyze the scene, including damage & burn patterns, while another will gather surveillance video, digital evidence, etc,” Fox News reporter Bill Melugin said.

The Pacific Palisades fire erupted last Tuesday morning.

LAX video journalist “Airline Videos” captured the moment the Pacific Palisades fire broke out on Tuesday morning.

On Tuesday morning around 10:30, LAX airport streamer Kevin noticed a plume of smoke shortly before a United Airlines flight landed.

“Uh oh! Uh oh! Uh oh! Not something we wanna see here in Southern California. A fire has now broke out. That is looking like Encino. Uh oh. Not what we wanna see here in Southern California. A fire has now broke out there in the hills. I believe that’s looking toward possibly Bel Air, Encino,” Livestreamer Kevin said Tuesday morning.

“This was the concern for many with these high winds and as dry as they are. Weather watch in full effect,” Kevin said referring to the gusty Santa Ana winds that reached over 80 miles per hour on Tuesday.

“With these high winds that fire can spread really quickly,” Kevin said as he panned over to the plume of smoke in the distance. “There are a lot of expensive homes up there in the hills.”

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Who Is Gloria Lynn Mandich? The Accused Arsonist Behind California’s Freddy Fire

California continues to battle devastating wildfires, with over 130,000 residents displaced and numerous state parks closed. Amid this ongoing crisis, law enforcement has arrested 60-year-old Gloria Lynn Mandich for felony arson. She is accused of starting the Freddy Fire, a brush fire near Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) close to the Ventura County line.

The Freddy Fire broke out on January 8 near Leo Carrillo State Beach, a popular coastal destination. The fire ignited around 12:40 p.m., burning approximately three acres before being brought under control. Firefighters from Los Angeles and Ventura counties collaborated to extinguish the blaze, preventing further spread. Initially, the Freddy Fire was believed to be a spot fire caused by embers from the much larger Palisades Fire. However, investigators soon linked it to Mandich, leading to her arrest by California State Parks officers.

Charges and Legal Proceedings

Mandich faces two serious felony charges filed by the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office: arson during a state of emergency and recklessly causing a forest fire. She pleaded not guilty during her arraignment and is currently held in Ventura County’s Todd Road Jail with bail set at $20,000. If released, she will be subject to strict conditions, including a ban on possessing matches, lighters, or cigarettes, and compliance with searches for these items. Her next court appearance is scheduled for January 22.

California’s Wildfire Challenges

Mandich’s arrest is the second related to arson during the current wildfire season. The Palisades Fire, a massive blaze consuming nearly 20,000 acres, has forced widespread evacuations and prompted the closure of key state parks, including Topanga State Park and Malibu Creek State Park. Both the Freddy Fire and the Palisades Fire erupted during a red flag warning issued by the National Weather Service. The warning signaled extreme fire danger due to dry vegetation and strong Santa Ana winds. While the winds have since subsided, officials remain cautious, noting that small fires can escalate rapidly under current conditions.

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LAPD Claims ‘No Probable Cause’ for Arson as Suspect Caught with Blowtorch Attempting to Ignite Fires

A man apprehended near the Kenneth Fire in Los Angeles will not face arson charges due to insufficient evidence, according to the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD).

The suspect, whose identity has not been disclosed, was detained on Thursday after witnesses reported observing him attempting to ignite a fire on Ybarra Road in Woodland Hills.

Assistant Chief Dominic Choi said during a press conference on Friday:

“They interviewed this suspect. After the interview and additional investigative steps, looking at some additional evidence that was present, they made the determination that there was not enough probable cause to arrest this person on arson or suspicion of arson, and therefore this person was arrested on a felony probation violation.

This investigation is ongoing, however, and I’d like to thank those community members that were involved in this and helping us bring this person our attention, and so we can have an ongoing investigation.”

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Moment Locals Detained Arsonist Who Used Blowtorch To Start More LA Fires Caught On Camera

According to the Los Angeles Police Department, citizens witnessed a man using a blowtorch to start fires amid the city’s ongoing disaster and apprehended the individual until officers arrived to make an arrest.

Speaking with News Nation on Thursday night, an officer said the fire was intentionally sparked by the man who ended up being detained by the heroic locals.

The man carried a large blowtorch and rode a bicycle down the street while stopping to try and light garbage cans and old Christmas trees on fire, according to eyewitnesses.

When angry residents saw this, they reportedly chased him down and restrained him while waiting on the police.

A neighbor named Renata Grinshpun told KTLA, “We were sitting in the backyard and suddenly, we hear a car come to a screeching halt, and the guy is running out saying, ‘Stop! Drop what you’re holding! Neighbors, he’s trying to start a fire! Call 911!’”

The suspect is believed to be responsible for the Kenneth fire, which has burned over 900 acres so far and still threatens nearby communities and infrastructure.

The individual is allegedly homeless and speaks Spanish as his first language, hinting he may be an illegal immigrant.

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Angry L.A. Residents Tackle ‘Homeless’ Arsonist, Turn Him Over to Cops

Los Angeles has rediscovered law and order in these past few days. L.A. cops and sheriff’s deputies have arrested at least 20 looters and on Thursday night they arrested a man who was seen setting the nearly 900 acre Kenneth Fire in Woodland Hills/Calabasas.

KTLA reports that neighbors on the Citizen app reported that the man, who looked possibly Middle Eastern, was “tackled and held” by neighbors until police got there and placed him under arrest (although he hasn’t been charged). 

Residents who reportedly spotted the suspect held him down until officers arrived. Photos of the arrest shared on the Citizen app show officers surrounding a home where a male suspect was apprehended.

Authorities have not confirmed whether the man was responsible or had any connection with the current wildfires. His identity was not released.

The Kenneth Fire was first reported around 2:30 p.m. in an area of dry brush in the Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space just north of the 101 Freeway. By 6 p.m., the fire grew to 960 acres with zero containment.

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What to Know About the Suspect Behind Ballot Box Fires in the Northwest

The man suspected of setting fires in ballot drop boxes in Oregon and Washington state is an experienced metalworker and may be planning additional attacks, authorities said Wednesday.

Investigators believe the man who set the incendiary devices at ballot boxes in Portland, Oregon, and nearby Vancouver, Washington, had a “wealth of experience” in metal fabrication and welding, said Portland Police Bureau spokesperson Mike Benner.

The way the devices were constructed and the way they were attached to the metal drop boxes showed that expertise, Benner said.

Authorities described the suspect as a white man, age 30 to 40, who is balding or has very short hair.

Police previously said surveillance video showed the man driving a black or dark-colored 2001 to 2004 Volvo S-60. The vehicle did not have a front license plate, but it did have a rear plate with unknown letters or numbers.

The incendiary devices were marked with the message “Free Gaza,” according to a law enforcement official who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation.

A third device placed at a different drop box in Vancouver earlier this month also carried the words “Free Palestine” in addition to “Free Gaza,” the official said.

Investigators are trying to identify the person responsible and the motive for the suspected arson attacks, which destroyed or damaged hundreds of ballots at the drop box in Vancouver on Monday when the box’s fire suppression system didn’t work as intended. Authorities are trying to figure out whether the suspect actually had pro-Palestinian views or used the message to try to create confusion, the official said.

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Homeless man admits to torching mailbox, destroying ballots in Phoenix

A homeles Phoenix man was arrested on Thursday after he allegedly set fire to a US Postal Service collection box that contained numerous election ballots. 35-year-old Dieter Klofkorn was charged with one count of arson and booked into Maricopa County jail. He later confessed to the crime.

The Phoenix Fire Department contacted police shortly after 1 am on Thursday after they responded to a fire at a USPS collection box on Seventh Avenue, a press release stated. 

While working on leads in the case, investigators were led to possible suspect Klofkorn. He was arrested on an outstanding and unrelated warrant. While in custody, he admitted to the arson. “Klofkorn stated that he committed the arson because he wanted to be arrested and that his actions were not politically motivated and not related to anything involving the upcoming election,” the press release stated.

Klofkorn was said to have lit a piece of paper on fire and tossed it into the collection box, in which there were around 20 election ballots and other pieces of mail, which were destroyed, according to AZ Central. Social media users claimed that the fire was set by a Republican, with an official Democratic Party account on X spreading the claims. “But yeah, Democrats are the ones doing voter fraud,” wrote the Harris County, Texas Democratic Party X account in response to a post that claimed Klofkorn was a Republican. 

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Burning ballots pulled from inside smoking Vancouver ballot box; hundreds likely damaged

Hundreds of ballots burned in a Vancouver ballot box arson Monday morning, authorities report.

KATU was on the scene at Fisher’s Landing Transit Center in Vancouver shortly after 4 a.m., where heavy smoke was seen coming from inside a dropoff ballot box.

Our photographer captured grey smoke steadily billowing out of the Park and Ride ballot box at Fisher’s Landing Transit Center near Southeast 162nd Avenue just after 6 a.m.

Multiple police units were in the area, and the ballot box was cordoned off by police tape as it continued to smoke.

Around 6:30 a.m., KATU captured footage of first responders releasing a pile of actively burning ballots onto the ground, which continued to smolder and smoke heavily even after the flames were put out.

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Cal Fire employee arrested in connection with off-duty arson

A member of California’s firefighter department has been accused of violating his own duties and starting several fires over the last couple of weeks.

CAL FIRE law enforcement officers arrested Robert Hernandez, 38, a CAL FIRE fire apparatus engineer, at Howard Forest Fire Station Friday, and accused him of setting five fires while off duty.

The blazes burned through a combined area of under an acre, according to CAL FIRE.

“I am appalled to learn one of our employees would violate the public’s trust and attempt to tarnish the tireless work of the 12,000 women and men of CAL FIRE,” CAL FIRE Director and Fire Chief Joe Tyler, said in a statement.

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San Bernardino wildfire started by suspected arsonist

A California man has been arrested in connection with the San Bernardino Line Fire, which has scorched tens of thousands of acres of forestland. The wildfire, which began last week, has led to significant damage and the evacuation of residents in affected areas.Justin Wayne Halstenberg, a 34-year-old resident of Norco, California, was taken into custody following an investigation by the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department into the wildfire that has resulted in over 34,000 acres being burned. 

“Highland Station detectives, in collaboration with Cal Fire investigators, identified Justin Wayne Halstenberg as the suspect who started a fire in the area of Baseline Road and Alpin Street in the city of Highland, also known as the Line Fire, on September 5, 2024,” said the sheriff’s office in a press release.

Halstenberg has been a delivery driver for FedEx since last year and previously worked at the US Postal Service, according to the New York Post. He is facing multiple charges, including arson of an inhabited structure, arson of forest land, and possession of flammable material.

Authorities have not provided further details on how Halstenberg is suspected of starting the fire. He is currently being held at San Bernardino’s Central Detention Center on $80,000 bail, with a court appearance scheduled for Thursday.

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