Suspected Palisades Fire Starter Ordered to Remain Behind Bars

Jonathan Rinderknecht will remain in custody on charges he ‘maliciously set’ a New Year’s Day blaze in Topanga State Park than smoldered and erupted into the deadly Palisades fire

Jonathan Rinderknecht, the former Uber driver and Pacific Palisades resident charged with intentionally hiking to a clearing where he sparked a wildfire that later ignited into the deadly blaze that killed twelve, will remain in custody while awaiting trial.

That ruling was issued Tuesday by United States Magistrate Judge Rozella A. Oliver in Los Angeles, federal prosecutors say. Rinderknecht was arrested on Oct. 8 at his sister’s home in Florida by agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms just over ten months after the devastating Palisades fire began to devour nearly 7,000 homes and businesses in the Pacific Palisades and Malibu, fueled by the fierce Santa Ana winds that began to rage on the morning of Jan. 7.

“This means he will remain in federal custody without bond while the criminal case against him is pending. We will have no further comment,” a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney in California’s Central District said in a statement.

Rinderknecht pleaded not guilty at his arraignment late last month in Los Angeles to three federal arson charges: one count of arson affecting property used in interstate commerce, one count of destruction of property by means of fire, and one count of timber set afire, connected to the Lachman fire, which prosecutors say he “maliciously set.”

The blaze smoldered underground for days and became what is known as a “holdover fire,” which then reignited and became the deadly and devastating Palisades fire, ATF and Los Angeles Fire Department officials say.

If convicted, Rinderknecht would serve between five and 45 years in prison for his connection to the Palisades fire that caused $150 billion in damages. Months before the fire, investigators say, Rinderknecht created an eerie AI image of fire using ChatGPT. On the night he allegedly lit the fire, he was listening to a rap song about setting things ablaze, investigators say.

Credit: Department of Justice

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Rinderknecht’s family is standing by him. His parents are missionaries in the south of France.