A former “Chicago Fire” actor and his neighbors swung into action and detained a Mexican man with a “flame thrower” near the Kenneth Fire, which had been terrorizing the community in a dramatic citizen's arrest last week.
Brian J. White, who played Captain Dallas Patterson on the hit NBC show, was preparing to evacuate his Woodland Hills home on Thursday in case a fire started in the neighboring West Hills neighborhood. I heard a scream.
“I hear a cry of 'Put it down, put it down!'” White told the deadline A photo of one of the neighbors confronting 33-year-old Juan Manuel Sierra-Leyva.
With his daughter hiding in a closet, the actor believed there was a gunman outside and rushed outside to help a fellow good Samaritan.
An eagle-eyed neighbor saw Sierra Leyva, who was riding a bicycle, using a blowtorch to set White's trash can containing leaves and branches on fire.
Sierra Leyva, who was in the country illegally, was chased off the street 20 minutes ago after an unidentified neighbor spotted her trying to light an old Christmas tree.
The 49-year-old actor joined two other neighbors to support Sierra-Leyva in the front yard of one of the nearby homes, where they tied up a firebug and his torch.
Video footage showed White trying to calm Sierra-Leyva, who was being restrained by two men during the confrontation.
“It was more of a hostage negotiation exercise,” White told the outlet. “I've been on many police ride-alongs over the years, and one of the things they often talk about is staying calm and communicating.
“So I was trying to make it clear to the gentleman that I didn't really care about explanations. He was standing on my property with a lit torch and I was waiting until the police arrived. I'm going to get it.”
Sierra Leyva was restrained with zip ties and rope in a section of a nearby garage.
While Sierra-Leyva was confronted by several men, White's wife, Paula da Silva, watched the arrest on her cell phone from across the street.
Ms White said the alleged arsonist began acting erratically and appeared to be out of his mind while waiting for police.
“He then became very aggressive when asked what he was doing here,” White added. “He said he was looking for a place to hang out. And we're like, this is not the place to hang out.”
Neighborhood groups told unwelcome visitors that they were “making a citizen's arrest.”
Police arrested Sierra Leyva and charged her with a felony violation of probation, although there was not enough evidence to slap her with arson.
Neighbors disagree that police lack evidence of the arson charge.
“The fire was coming towards us from where the man had come from, so we suspected the fire had crept in close to the time the man was in our neighborhood with a torch,” White said. spoke.
Following his arrest, ICE placed detainees on Sierra Leyva Island on Sunday, but sources told the Post they do not expect them to be respected by California's sanctuary state law.
White, who has a recurring role on “Criminal Minds: Evolution,” said his reaction was a “split-second decision” to protect his wife and daughter from the threat of fire.
“I felt good because that was my immediate reaction. It felt good because it was the reaction of all the neighbors who helped and responded,” said White. He said he felt better knowing he was being protected by vigilant residents.
The Kenneth Fire burned 1,052 acres (1.6 square miles) in Los Angeles and Ventura counties and was completely extinguished on the morning of January 12, three days after it started near Victory Boulevard in the West Hills.
