Federal indictment charges Jonathan Rinderknecht in Palisades Fire

A federal grand jury has indicted 29 year old Jonathan Rinderknecht on three federal counts, accusing him of intentionally igniting a small brush fire on New Year’s Day that later rekindled and became the deadly Palisades Fire in Los Angeles. Prosecutors say the blaze, which reemerged amid strong winds on January 7, burned roughly 23,000 acres, destroyed thousands of structures and killed 12 people.

The indictment, filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, charges Rinderknecht with destruction of property by means of fire, arson affecting property used in interstate commerce and setting timber afire. Federal officials said the added felonies raise his potential prison exposure to between five and 45 years if he is convicted on all counts. Rinderknecht has been in federal custody since his arrest on October 7 and is expected to be arraigned in U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles in the coming weeks.

Prosecutors allege that the initial blaze, identified as the Lachman Fire, began just after midnight on January 1 near the Skull Rock Trailhead in the Pacific Palisades. Investigators determined the Lachman Fire was incendiary in origin, caused by the introduction of an open flame...