The LA Ten Four

By Sean Beckner-Carmitchel

Arrest Made In Conjunction With Palisades Fire

LOS ANGELES — Bill Essayli, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, announced via social media that an arrest has been made in conjunction with the Palisades Fire.

_{A building begins to collapse during the Palisades Fire (Credit: Nick Stern})

According to the Department of Justice, a former Pacific Palisades resident who now lives in Florida has been arrested on suspicion he began the Palisades Fire in January of 2025. The fires went on for days, killing 12 and was among the most destructive wildfires in Los Angeles history.

Within a federal criminal complaint, Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, who appears to be on social media under the names “Jonathan Rinder” and “Jon Rinder,” is charged with destruction of property by means of fire. He was arrested Tuesday and is expected to make his initial appearance today in United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

_{Criminal Complaint, courtesy US Attorney’s Office}

“The complaint alleges that a single person’s recklessness caused one of the worst fires Los Angeles has ever seen, resulting in death and widespread destruction in Pacific Palisades,” said Acting United States Attorney Bill Essayli. “While we cannot bring back what victims lost, we hope this criminal case brings some measure of justice to those affected by this horrific tragedy.”

Los Angeles Fire Department Interim Fire Chief Ronnie Villanueva released a statement saying “Today, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the arrest of a suspect in connection with January’s Palisades Fire. This action was deliberate, intended to cause devastating harm to the City of Los Angeles. This arrest is a critical step toward ensuring accountability, justice, and healing for our city.”

“At the request of state and local authorities, ATF took the lead in this complex investigation utilizing techniques unique to our agency’s capabilities,” said Special Agent in Charge Kenny Cooper of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Los Angeles Field Division. He continued the statement, “the horrific loss of life and property was significantly felt by ATF members, and we are honored to utilize our expertise to provide answers to this community. We remain committed to serving with integrity and distinction.”

According to an affidavit filed with the federal criminal complaint, law enforcement investigators determined that the Palisades Fire was a continuation of the Lachman Fire which began on New Year’s Day of 2025. While firefighters were able to suppress that burn, it continued to smolder underneath the ground within vegetation and roots.

By January 7, the underground fire reached the surface and spread above ground in what became known as the Palisades Fire. According to authorities, law enforcement determined that Rinderknecht maliciously set the Lachman Fire just after midnight on New Year’s Day.

Shortly after the announcement of the arrest, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass released a statement which read “More than 9 months ago, our city faced one of the most devastating periods our region had ever seen. Lives were tragically lost. Thousands of homes were destroyed. Our heroic firefighters fought the blaze valiantly with no rest. Each day that families are displaced is a day too long and as we are working tirelessly to bring Angelenos home, we are also working towards closure and towards justice – and today is a step forward in that process.”

“I want to thank the federal Department of Justice and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for their work, and the leadership of Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles Fire Department for their efforts, both of which were part of a multi-jurisdictional task force that led to this arrest. Now that this phase of the investigation has concluded, the City will release the LAFD after action report shortly.”

According to authorities, Rinderknecht – who once lived a block away – drove towards Skull Rock Trailhead, parked his car, and attempted to contact his former roommate at the Skull Rock Trailhead. Rinderknecht then walked up the trail, according to authorities, and took videos at a nearby hilltop area.

According to the criminal complaint, Renderknectht listened to a rap song called “Un Zder, Un The,” by French artist Josman. The song’s music video includes fires being set; Rinderknecht watched the music video three times in four days according to the complaint.

Just a few minutes later, according to charging documents, at 12:12 a.m. on January 1, 2025, environmental sensing platforms indicated the Lachman Fire had begun. According to authorities, Rinderknecht called 911 several times, but didn’t get through because his iPhone was out of cellphone range. When he finally connected with 911, he was at the bottom of the hiking trail and reported the fire. A nearby resident had by then already had reported the fire to authorities.

Authorities claim that as Rinderknecht was reporting the fire, he typed into Chat GPT asking “are you at fault if a fire is lift because of your cigarettes.” ChatGPT’s answer was “yes,” according to the federal criminal complaint. Rinderknecht also made a three minute screen recording of his attempts to call 911 according to the federal criminal complaint.

Though Rinderknecht mentioned cigarettes, they were excluded from possible causes of the flame by investigators looking for the source of the initial flame. Also excluded were fireworks, downed power lines, lightning strikes and refraction of sunlight onto glass. Most likely, the fire began with a direct heating source (in this case, alleged to be Rinderknecht’s green stick lighter) to vegetation or paper.

The US Attorney’s Office says that Rinderknecht then fled in his car, passing fire engines driving in the opposite direction. He then turned around and followed the fire engines to the scene. Rinderknecht walked up the same trail from earlier that night to watch the fire, taking video.

On January 24, according to authorities, Rinderknecht lied to law enforcement about where he was when he first saw the Lachman Fire. Rinderknecht claimed he was near the bottom of a hiking trail when he first saw the fire and called 911, but geolocation data from his iPhone carrier showed that he was standing in a clearing 30 feet from the fire as it rapidly grew. The federal criminal complaint also shows Rinderknecht’s vehicle parked close to the initial blaze.

If convicted, Rinderknecht would face a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in federal prison and a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.