A man who has been arrested on suspicion of starting the deadly Palisades Fire that destroyed thousands of homes and killed a dozen people in Los Angeles last year allegedly used ChatGPT to generate images of burning forests and cities, according to law enforcement officials.

The suspect in custody, 29-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht, was arrested near his home in Florida on Tuesday for destruction of property by means of fire, acting US Attorney Bill Essayli told reporters at a press conference on Wednesday.

Federal prosecutors allege that Rinderknecht started an initial eight acre blaze, called the Lachman fire, in the early hours of New Year’s Day. Firefighters initially put out the fire, but it rekindled days later, which prosecutors say eventually grew into the even larger inferno th

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