The world is watching as the California wildfires are taking a toll on thousands of homes and an untold number of people. Despite the fact that those fires have caused much devastation, there are some who would like to see more.
According to reports, police have arrested a man who was trying to light fires in Los Angeles, even as the wildfires were already burning through the area. It’s horrible to think that somebody would be so twisted that they would do something like this, but we know that it happens.
It happened on January 9 around 4:30 in the afternoon. A man was spotted allegedly trying to start a fire in the area of Ybarra Road and Woodland Hill. Immediately upon seeing what he was doing, residents got in touch with the police.
They supposedly spotted the man on a bicycle riding around with a blow torch in his hand. He was using the blowtorch to try to set fire to old Christmas trees and garbage cans that were along the street.
One of the local residents, Renata Grinshpun said: “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!’”
Grinshpun said that the man was carrying either a ‘propane tank or a flamethrower’ and said that a group of locals got together to follow the man. They caught up with him, zip-tied him, and prevented him from doing any further damage or leaving the scene.
Another resident said: “He was very, like, ‘I can’t stop. I can’t stop. I’m not putting this down. I’m doing this’. And [he was] very focused on moving forward with the blow torch. And we’re like, ‘We can’t be doing that right now.'”
Charles Dinsel, the senior lead officer did confirm a man was caught attempting to start a fire and was arrested. Authorities were seen in videos from the scene apprehending the man.
According to a spokesman for the LAPD: “About 20 to 30 minutes later a suspect was detained over in Woodland Hills area by citizens. It is being investigated as a crime.”
They are also looking into the possibility that the suspect may be connected to other fires that are currently burning in the area. This includes the Kenneth Fire, which is burning out of control in West Hills. More than 950 acres of land were burnt and residents were forced to evacuate.
