Police arrest suspected arsonist responsible for Los Angeles’ Palisades Fire

Hunter Bassler
October 8, 2025

A 29-year-old man has been arrested and is facing charges for allegedly starting Los Angeles’ historic Palisades Fire in January.

Acting U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli, in a post on social media on Wednesday, said authorities arrested Melbourne, Florida, resident Jonathan Rinderknecht for maliciously starting the fire on New Year’s Day.

“Investigators determined that the Palisades Fire reported on Jan. 7 was caused by an intentionally set fire near a viewpoint along the Temescal Ridge Trail in Topanga State Park on Jan. 1,” Acting Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Agent in Charge Kenny Cooper said at a press conference on Wednesday. “We know this arrest cannot erase the pain or grief or losses endured, but we hope it is a step forward.”

Authorities believe Rinderknecht set the fire on Jan. 1, and it continued to burn in dry brush before eventually evolving into one of the region’s deadliest and most destructive wildfires on record. Investigators reportedly identified Rinderknecht on Jan. 24 as a potential suspect.

During his interview with authorities, Rinderknecht allegedly lied, telling investigators he wasn’t near the fire. Geolocation data for a 911 call he made about the fire allegedly showed he was standing 30 feet away from the fire after he dropped someone off there while driving for Uber around midnight.

Investigators also said Rinderknecht previously lived in the area and they allegedly found numerous ChatGPT-generated images depicting burning cities among the evidence collected from Rinderknecht’s possessions.

His initial court appearance is scheduled for the U.S. District Court in Orlando at 1:30 p.m. EDT on Wednesday. Rinderknecht has no previous criminal history.

Credit: Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli

The Palisades Fire killed 12 people and destroyed more than 6,000 homes and buildings in the wealthy Pacific Palisades neighborhood in Los Angeles. A recent Redfin analysis estimated that the fire caused $51.7 billion worth of damage by damaging over 11,000 residential properties in the region.

“The council shared a list of 11,125 residential parcels in the city of Los Angeles that were inspected by the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety after the wildfires,” the company said. “Redfin was able to match nearly 11,000 of those parcels with Redfin property value estimates as of December 2024—the month before the fires. Many, but not all, were completely destroyed by the fires.”