A man who was taken into custody by citizens shortly after wildfires near Calabasas and West Hills has not been charged with starting the blazes, authorities announced Friday morning.
Los Angeles police said they were called to Woodland Hills around 4:30 p.m. local time Thursday after receiving a 911 call reporting a man trying to start a fire in the 21700 block of Ybarra Road.
Residents found the suspect and detained him until police arrived. Photos shared on the Citizen app show police surrounding a house where a man was handcuffed.
“We were sitting in the backyard and all of a sudden we heard a car screeching to a halt and the man started running, saying, 'Stop!'” Throw away what you have! Neighbors, he's trying to start a fire! Please call 911! '' recalled Renata Grynszpan, who witnessed the incident.
At the same time, a few miles to the west, firefighters from Los Angeles and Ventura counties were working to extinguish the Kenneth Fire, which threatened homes on the north side of the 101 Freeway.
The fire was eventually stopped at 1,000 acres, with no buildings lost.
At a press conference Friday morning, Los Angeles Police Department Chief Dominic Choi said that after investigating the incident and interviewing the suspect, police ultimately determined that arson charges could not be filed. Ta.
“After interviews and additional investigation, we considered some of the additional evidence that existed, and determined that there was no sufficient reason to arrest this person on suspicion of arson or arson,” Choi said.
Instead, the man was arrested for a felony probation violation.
“The investigation is ongoing,” Choi said. “We would like to thank the members of the community who were involved in bringing this individual to our attention.”
The cause of the Kenneth Fire is still under investigation.
Crews across Southern California continued to battle two of the most destructive wildfires in California history, the Palisades Fire in Pacific Palisades and Malibu and the Eaton Fire in Altadena and Pasadena.
As of Friday, the causes of both fires had not yet been determined.
