Authorities said they have arrested a 29-year-old man in Florida in connection with the deadly January wildfire that destroyed the Los Angeles neighborhood of Pacific Palisades.
The arrest was announced during a press conference on Wednesday afternoon. Jonathan Rinderknecht is accused of lighting a fire on New Year’s Day that burned down much of the Palisades a week later.
He was arrested on Tuesday in Florida and will make his first court appearance on Wednesday in Orlando.
The blaze, which erupted on Jan. 7, killed 12 people and destroyed more than 6,000 homes and buildings in the Pacific Palisades, a wealthy coastal neighborhood of LA.
Investigators still haven't determined the cause of that blaze or the Eaton Fire, which broke out the same day in the community of Altadena and killed 18 people.
Both fires burned for days, reducing entire neighborhoods to rubble and ash.
An outside review released in September found that a lack of resources and outdated policies for sending emergency alerts led to delayed evacuation warnings.
The report commissioned by Los Angeles County supervisors said a series of weaknesses, including "outdated policies, inconsistent practices and communications vulnerabilities," hampered the county's response.
