Los Angeles, CA…A former Pacific Palisades resident now living in Florida has been arrested on a federal criminal complaint charging him with maliciously starting what eventually became the Palisades Fire of January 2025, one of the most destructive wildfires in Los Angeles history, the Justice Department announced today.
Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, a.k.a. “Jonathan Rinder,” and “Jon Rinder,” of Melbourne, Florida, 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.
“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.”
“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. “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 complaint, law enforcement determined that the Palisades Fire was a “holdover” fire – a continuation of the Lachman Fire that began early in the morning on New Year’s Day 2025. Although firefighters quickly suppressed the Lachman Fire, unbeknownst to anyone the fire continued to smolder and burn underground within the root structure of dense vegetation.
On January 7, heavy winds caused the underground fire to surface and spread above ground in what became known as the Palisades Fire, which caused widespread damage in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles.
Law enforcement determined – using witness statements, video surveillance, cellphone data, and analysis of fire dynamics and patterns at the scene, among other things – that Rinderknecht maliciously set the Lachman Fire just after midnight on January 1 on land owned by the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA), an organization that received federal funding. A week later, the same fire – then known as the Palisades Fire – burned federal property.
On the evening of December 31, 2024, Rinderknecht was working as an Uber driver. Two passengers that he drove on separate trips between 10:15 p.m. and 11:15 p.m. that night later told law enforcement they remembered that Rinderknecht appeared agitated and angry.
After dropping off a passenger in Pacific Palisades, Rinderknecht – who once lived in that neighborhood – drove towards Skull Rock Trailhead, parked his car, attempted to contact a former friend, and walked up the trail. He then used his iPhone to take videos at a nearby hilltop area and listened to a rap song – to which he had listened repeatedly in previous days – whose music video included things being lit on fire.
At 12:12 a.m. on January 1, 2025, environmental sensing platforms indicated the Lachman Fire had begun. During the next five minutes, 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. By that point, a nearby resident already had reported the fire to authorities.
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, driving at a high rate of speed. Rinderknecht walked up the same trail from earlier that night to watch the fire and the firefighters. At approximately 1:02 a.m., he used his iPhone to take more videos of the scene.
During an interview with law enforcement on January 24, 2025, Rinderknecht lied about where he was when he first saw the Lachman Fire. He 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.
A complaint contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
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.
ATF is investigating this matter, with substantial assistance from the Los Angeles Police Department and the United States Forest Service.
Assistant United States Attorneys Mark A. Williams, Matthew W. O’Brien, and Danbee C. Kim of the Environmental Crimes and Consumer Protection Section, and Assistant United States Attorney Laura A. Alexander of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section are prosecuting this case.
Florida Man Arrested on Federal Criminal Complaint Alleging He Maliciously Started What Became the Palisades Fire added by admin on
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What about the arsonist in the WH ?
He is trying to burn America down.
What a sorry bunch of criminals.
Bondi is trying to ignore her cover-up history, would not answer any questions from Dem or GOP Senators.
A F-U to America.
I wouldn’t Piss on you if you were on fire.
REALLY, COMING FROM THE PARTY OF HATE, VIOLENCE AND LOSERS?
HEADLINE NEWS THAT LEGACY MEDIA WON’T REPORT BECAUSE IT MAKES DEMOCRATS WEEP
Europe
Fairways, friendship and a $6 billion deal: How Finland’s president found a partner in Trump
Alexander Stubb challenged Trump to a round at Mar-a-Lago, earning a rapport that opened diplomatic doors.
President Trump just keeps on winning for America and her people First.
The trade deal signed Thursday, for 11 ships valued at roughly $6.1 billion, is the latest sign of how that alignment is taking shape. Under the deal Trump approved, three of the ships will be built by Davie in Galveston, Texas, and four by Bollinger Shipyards in Houma, Louisiana, a setup that aligns with his “Made in America” credo and emphasis on creating U.S. jobs, injecting billions of dollars into the maritime industrial base.
And when it comes to icebreakers, Helsinki is firmly in its element: Finnish companies design roughly 80% of the world’s fleet.
Finland’s expertise has made it more than just a supplier. It’s turned Helsinki into a trusted player in Trump’s Arctic strategy, a region increasingly defined by military competition with Russia and China, melting sea routes and access to critical minerals.
American soldiers right now. They are getting experience from our Arctic conditions, and we are integrating our militaries together,” Stubb said during a meeting in the Oval Office
For now, Stubb’s rapport with Trump has turned the fairway into a diplomatic fast track. Whether that personal chemistry endures amid shifting politics remains to be seen, but, for Finland, the gains are already tangible.
AMERICA JUST KEEPS ON WINNING WITH PRESIDENT DONALD J TRUMP AS PRESIDENT.
Biden caused tens of thousands killed in the Middle East, and over 1Million between Ukraine and Russia. What did you do besides celebrate that Administration? Talk about being an imbecile, no wonder our adversaries love the democrats so much.
As of February 1st 2025, New California registered voters enrollment.
Independent voters 84,000
Republican voters 42,000
Democrat voters 190
Just presenting facts that the legacy media won’t for obvious reasons.
Thats not true about CA new registered voters. Since Feb. 2025 independent voters numbers were at 87,000 voters. The other 2 are correct. Imagine that after 4 years of Democrats in the WH, and now with Gavin Newsom’s 8 years of letting CA burn, highest taxes in the nation, worst financially run state in the nation, highest gas prices in the nation and with the near future of almost doubling? And he’s going to run in 2028, what a fricking joke. Not only will republicans have a field day on Newsom, democrats hoping to run against Newsom will shred Newsom. But who knows, the DNC might not give their voters THEIR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS TO PICK THEIR CANDIDATE YET AGAIN!!! Talk about a Dictatorship and Tyrants, no wonder they have Millions fleeing their party.
This one is real interesting, going back to the last administration. This is what happens when our entire Nation knows they had the worst administration in modern history and put America and her people last.
“Summary of the results
Based on the available analyses, current voter registration numbers show significant shifts in party affiliation between 2020 and 2024. According to the data, Democrats lost 2.1 million registered voters while Republicans gained 2.4 million voters during this period, creating a net swing of 4.5 million voters [1] [2]. This trend occurred across all 30 states that track voter registration by party”
Welcome to bringing back our country from the abyss of the last administration’s debacle, and now they are shutting down our government, and hurting American families again. Any wonder why MILLIONS HAVE FLED THE HAMACRATS?
And where do you get these facts?
They were so sure that the power company had started the fire so quick to get a lawyer now they fine differently.Tell me are people so f—king stupid or just looking for a quick dollar as for the fire inspector look for the easy answer and that pat on the back and of course thank you for your sorry ass service
Whats the difference between a democrat and a cockroach? The cockroach can tell difference between a male and female.
Ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
I’d let Katie Porter sit on my face, Adam Fairy on live oak ct..
The main architect of project 2025 on Substack , he may leave the country because maga (the don) and inept crew didn’t kill Democracy in America.
Good to know what the billionaires wanted.
Republicans went along.
^ the last of 2 dems in Calaveras County. Dumb and his brother, dumber.
Curtis Yarvin the anti Democracy zealot who worked on project 2025, and was a close ally of J D Vance, and the billionaires who want to end Democracy in America .
Yarvin said seeing how badly the Don and maga has botched the end of Democracy they were supposed to initiate, he may leave America , to escape the legal jeopardy he has when the Democrats come back to power due to the failure of inept maga and the don.
Software engineer and far-right blogger Curtis Yarvin says he’s considering leaving the U.S. because the Trump administration is failing to kill democracy to his liking and he fears political retribution from Democrats if they regain power. In a blog post published this weekend on his Substack.
https://sfstandard.com/2025/10/07/citing-fear-democratic-vengeance-curtis-yarvin-says-may-flee-u-s/
Anyone know why the US is buying $20 billion dollars worth of pesos from Argentina?
While looking for information online, I stumbled into your blog. The amount of knowledge you have on your blog is impressive. It demonstrates your depth of knowledge on this topic. https://bl555.cash/
maga don is bolstering Argentina, and it’s wannbe dictator up for reelection.
Meanwhile the don is devaluing the US dollar.
The Brix countries, named after their currency, is ready to dethrone the US dollar, which will make imports more expensive.
More winning from the maga wrecking ball.
Hey everyone look above^^^ there’s still a dumbascrap voter.
Please send your money to the DNC to help with their shortfall of funds since Kamala spent all of it and more.
AHAHAHAHAHOHOHOHOHOHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHE
LOSERS OF AMERICA
Maybe next time you’ll get to vote for your candidate, but don’t count on it since you’re ruled by corrupt wannabe dictators of the DNC
Keep the faith brother, as your dear leader takes America down.
It appears you want this.
Denying seeing what is going on, or agreeing with it, is still anti America, as that is what is going on economically, politically, judicially, environmentally
Ending our Democracy and what the majority of citizens want is what maga wants.
The maga cult, follows the don’s pronouncement that any group anti maga are terrorists and are in a group called antifa.
WW2 was a war against the fascists, hitler mussolini togo.
The don , DOJ Bondi, stephan miller said Thursday that the no kings day protest is internationally supported by the enemies against America, antifa.
So any protest using free speech is now deemed antifa , and is then a terrorist protest.
The pro-democracy group Indivisible is among those speaking out against the Trump administration’s reported targeting of progressive and liberal organizations with various government agencies, including the FBI and IRS, as part of what critics call an “authoritarian playbook” by President Donald Trump that seeks to criminalize dissent, chill free speech, and frame nonviolent protest and opposition as “domestic terrorism.”
In-depth reporting by Reuters named Trump’s far-right, xenophobic White House advisor Stephen Miller as “playing a central role” in the internal effort to wield the power of federal agencies at a variety of organizations that the administration claims—contrary to all available evidence—are funding or orchestrating violent protests and political attacks.
Since it was California the state the firebug lit this disasterous fire in, Trump will pardon him.