How Police, Firefighters And A Security Guard Caught The Palisades Fire Arson Suspect
California May 23 2021 A homeless man who allegedly started the 1,158-acre brush fire in Pacific Palisades on Friday night was arrested after investigators sent to the scene say they saw him starting other fires in the area the following day, the Los Angeles Fire Department said on Tuesday.
Ramon Santos Rodriguez, 48, has been in custody since Sunday.
He was being treated for smoke inhalation while in custody and being held on $75,000 bail, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
On Tuesday Rodriguez was charged Tuesday with one felony count each of arson of a structure or forest and arson during a state of emergency, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
“Just after midnight, LAFD arson investigators were dispatched to the scene to determine the origin and cause of the fire,” the department reported. “Due to the inaccessible terrain and darkness, investigators gathered preliminary information and returned the next day.”
On Saturday morning, LAFD helicopter pilots saw a man moving around in the brush along a steep hillside near the fire, and a Los Angeles Police Department air patrol was dispatched to the scene to monitor him. Police officers kept watch on the ground while the LAPD Air Support Division “provided eyes in the sky,” the LAFD reported.
“During an aerial observation, the Tactical Flight Officer witnessed the individual ignite multiple additional fires,” the LAFD said.
LAFD arson investigators requested assistance from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Emergency Services Detail to find and apprehend the suspect in the rugged terrain.
“Deputies were lowered into the brush to begin their search,” the LAFD reported. “Because the fires were growing rapidly, deputies were forced to retreat.”
At about 11 a.m. Sunday, the man “emerged from the brush in the 1200 block of Palisades Drive,” the LAFD reported.
“A private security officer in the area recognized the person as a possible suspect and notified LAPD and LAFD (and) police officers arrived and detained the suspect.”
Rodriguez, who is homeless, was arrested and booked on suspicion of arson, officials said.
City Councilman Joe Buscaino, who is running for mayor in 2022, said the arrest shows the danger of the city’s ongoing homelessness crisis.
“Our homelessness crisis is destroying neighborhoods and endangering the lives of the housed and unhoused,” Buscaino said. “Over sixty percent of the fires that the LAFD has responded to this year have been related to homelessness. Allowing unregulated sprawling encampments is not compassionate, it’s reckless. That’s why we must act now on passing regulations that will return the rights of every Angeleno to enjoy our public spaces, and prohibit encampments whenever people are offered shelter. We must support safe and clean sidewalks, parks, and beaches. We must support a livable city where we can raise our children without being subjected rampant crime on our streets.” (Note: The L.A. Times reported last week that 54% of the fires LAFD responded to this year, not 60%, were related to homelessness.)
Los Angeles Fire Department arson investigators and Los Angeles police had detained two people in connection with the fire, and one was questioned and released Saturday night. The other person, Rodriguez, was interviewed on Sunday and was then arrested. “We feel we have the right person,” LAFD Chief Ralph Terrazas said at a Monday morning briefing.
The chief said the fact that the fire had “multiple points of ignition,” which is unusual, made investigators suspicious about its origins from the start.
The man who was detained and released Saturday night had his photo published by the Citizen personal safety app along with a $30,000 reward offer for the suspect’s arrest, but it turns out he was not the suspect police were looking for, according to multiple media reports.
Asked repeatedly about homeless encampments in the area Terrazas said that he had no knowledge of any near the fires ignition points, but that “there’s homeless encampments in brush areas in many areas of the city.”
“The LAFD Arson Counterterrorism Section, along with LAPD, have aggressively pursued all tips and all leads,” said the chief on Monday. “I want to have a special thank you to the community that provided us those tips and leads. We have to work together as a community. This problem is so significant in terms of major brush fires.”
“We count on those tips coming in, and then we vet the tips and we pursue investigations,” said Terrazas.
As for the fire itself, an LAFD update said containment has increased to 32% while approximate acreage has decreased from 1,325 to 1158. That drop is due to better mapping of the blaze.
While Topanga residents were allowed back on on Monday evening, an evacuation order is still in place for some Pacific Palisades residents. This is currently the active flank of the fire, according to the LAFD update.
Topanga Canyon Boulevard was reopened to the public at 1 p.m. Tuesday, when officials also lifted an evacuation warning issued Sunday for all homes north of Chastain Parkway in the 1500 block to Calle Del Cielo. The warning area included Calle De Sarah, Calle Bellevista and all homes west of Calle Del Cielo and Ave Ashley up to the hills.
There were eight helicopters and three water tenders on Tuesday morning making drops on areas that are difficult to access from the ground. Hand crews are working to expand containment lines. That’s where firefighters made “significant progress” overnight, gaining better access to some remote areas in order to mop up.
