A man accused of arson and a group of looters who targeted homes in evacuation zones have been indicted as wildfires rage in Los Angeles County, authorities announced Monday.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hockman said at a news conference that charges were filed against a group of people accused of home looting in the Pacific Palisades and Altadena areas, while an Azusa man was charged with arson. He said charges have been filed.
“These are people who are trying to exploit this tragedy for their own benefit,” Hochman said. “These are the people who did the looting and the arson. We're also looking into price gouging, and we're going to look into internet fraud and things like that.”
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Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hockman speaks at a news conference in downtown Los Angeles, Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, about the resentencing of Eric and Lyle Menendez for the murders of their parents decades ago. (AP Photo/Damien Dovarganes)
Hockman said the three suspects, identified as Martrell Peoples, Damari Bell and Travon Coleman, committed a residential burglary in Mandeville Canyon hours after the fire broke out, stealing more than $200,000 worth of property. He said he stole it. They were spotted on a Ring camera inside the home, he said.
They were eventually linked to an apartment in Koreatown and arrested there. Officials said numerous stolen items were found at the home.
Peoples has two prior strikes and is considering a third, potentially life sentence under California's three-strikes law, authorities said. Bell could be sentenced to 22 years in prison.
Rudy Salazar and Lucia Gillara Perez were also charged in connection with the Jan. 8 looting in Altadena during the Eaton Fire rampage, as well as two counts each of first-degree burglary. has been done. The two allegedly broke into two homes and were caught on the way to a third.
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Screenshot of suspect looting a Pacific Palisades home. (Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office)
A third pair of suspected looters stole Emmy Awards from an Altadena home and recovered them, authorities said. They were identified as Roy Sims, Ryan Sims-Quan, Naquan Dewey-Reddix and Pierrie O'Bannon.
“With the fires we've had in the Palisades and Los Angeles, where potentially 40,000 people have been evacuated from the area, isn't it enough that there are a few people trying to get out of there? They are engaged in activities that victimize them,” said Blake Chow, assistant chief of the Los Angeles Police Department. “It's not enough that they have to worry about their property and rebuilding and things like that.”
Arson suspect Jose Carranza-Escobar is accused of trying to set fire to a fallen tree at Pioneer Park. At the time of the arrest, police said the man was seen “standing near a flame” and was immediately taken into custody.
According to a police statement, “During the investigation, Carranza admitted to starting the fire and was arrested on suspicion of arson.''
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With multiple large wildfires burning in Los Angeles, Azusa police arrested 39-year-old homeless arson suspect Jose Carranza Escobar near smaller wildfires. (Courtesy of Fox News Digital)
Escobar was sentenced to nine years in prison and was scheduled to be arraigned on Monday.
Authorities are warning potential criminals not to target evacuated homes. In Santa Monicia, authorities have arrested at least 10 robbery suspects since the Palisades fire broke out last week.
Looting at Altadena home during fire. (Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office)
Officials told Fox News that six of the men had burglary tools and one had the Watch Duty app open on his phone to track the evacuation area. The Santa Monica Police Department said officers were able to stop the robbery before it occurred.
In all, Santa Monica police arrested 39 people in the evacuation zone. None of the suspects live in the city.
(Left to right) Joshua Kariel Love, Miguel Ángel Dorantes, Gabriel Asay Stokes and Dominic Pachecomanga are among the 10 suspects charged with robbery within the Palisades fire evacuation zone in Santa Monica. There were four of them. (Santa Monica Police Department)
Those who were not charged with attempted robbery were arrested on curfew violations, drug possession, warrants and probation violations. Sheriff Robert Luna said in a separate news conference Monday that the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has made 34 arrests since the fire started.
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“This is a strong message from all of us that we are here and that when we capture people, we mean business,” he said. “If you're not doing legitimate business in these areas, stay away, because our legislators are blocking people based on the Constitution, and they're questioning people.”
“We're coming up with drugs. We're coming up with people who own guns. And guess what? None of them live in these areas,” he added.
