"The court papers offer a slew of evidence that prosecutors say shows that Rinderknecht was on the hiking trail in the early morning hours of New Year's Day when the fire started. They include: Video footage of him dropping off passengers in the area and parking his car at the Skull Rock Trailhead. Photos and videos from his phone showing the early minutes of the fire on Jan. 1. A witness who placed him at the scene just after the fire began. Phone logs showing him call 911 after the fire began. GPS data from his phone showed he was standing in the clearing where the fire occurred when he first called 911."
"There are many unanswered questions that are likely to come into focus in the coming days and weeks. One question is Rinderknecht's alleged motive and how he actually started the fire. The second is whether there was more firefighters could have done to prevent the Jan. 1 fire from rekindling on Jan. 7. "The arsonist set the first fire, but the fire department proactively has a duty to do certain things," said Ed Nordskog, a former leader of the L.A. County Sheriff's arson unit and arson profiler."
Federal prosecutors allege Uber driver Jonathan Rinderknecht set a Jan. 1 fire at Skull Rock Trailhead in Pacific Palisades. Investigators cite video of a drop-off and parking, photos and videos from his phone, a witness placing him at the scene, 911 call logs, and GPS data showing his location. Fire crews believed they extinguished the Jan. 1 Lachman fire, but the blaze continued smoldering and later rekindled into the Palisades fire on Jan. 7. Prosecutors did not list a formal motive, leaving questions about how the fire was started and whether firefighters could have done more to prevent rekindling.
Read at Los Angeles Times
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