Federal authorities announced the arrest of a 29-year-old Uber driver in Florida on Wednesday who is charged with starting a blaze that eventually grew into the Palisades Fire just north of Los Angeles on New Year’s Day 2025. The fire destroyed over 23,000 acres, killed 12 people, and destroyed almost 7,000 structures over the following weeks.

Authorities allege Jonathan Rinderknecht, who previously lived in the Pacific Palisades, was working as an Uber driver in the area on New Year’s Eve and picked up at least two rides that night before starting a fire that would become known as the Lachman Fire, according to the criminal complaint filed in California.

The Lachman Fire was thought to be extinguished a few hours later, but the dry conditions allowed it to smolder undetected for a wee

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