5 key details to know about suspect in 'horrific' California wildfires

Investigators on Wednesday announced new information about the suspect in the devastating Pacific Palisades fire in January.

Here are five things to know about the suspect.

1. The suspect's name is Jonathan Rinderknecht.

He is a 29-year-old French-born man who was living in Florida at the time of the arrest, CNN reports. He formerly lived in the Pacific Palisades and has gone by the names “Jonathan Rinder” and “Jon Rinder."

2. Investigators point to a video from the trailhead, where the fire was set, with an image of his car.

Officials say he was the only person in the location at the time of the fire, and they matched video of his vehicle to Rinderknecht.

3. He was an Uber driver at the time of the fire. He used to live in the neighborhood.

He allegedly set the fire after dropping off passengers in the area on Dec. 31 and appeared "agitated and angry," according to two separate passengers who were in his car.

This fire spread over the course of several days, according to reports.

"After dropping off a passenger in Pacific Palisades, Rinderknecht – who once lived in that neighborhood – drove towards Skull Rock Trailhead, parked his car, attempted to contact a former friend, and walked up the trail," the U.S. Attorney's Office, Central District of California said in a statement.

4. He called 911 several times to report the fire, but struggled to connect because he was out of cellphone range.

He then connected with 911 after a neighbor reported the fire. He allegedly used his iPhone to take videos at a nearby hilltop area and listened to a rap song that he had listened to repeatedly in previous days. The song's music video included things being set on fire.

"During an interview with law enforcement on January 24, 2025, Rinderknecht lied about where he was when he first saw the Lachman Fire," officials said. "He claimed he was near the bottom of a hiking trail when he first saw the fire and called 911, but geolocation data from his iPhone carrier showed that he was standing in a clearing 30 feet from the fire as it rapidly grew."

5. He is expected to make his initial court appearance on Wednesday.

“The complaint alleges that a single person’s recklessness caused one of the worst fires Los Angeles has ever seen, resulting in death and widespread destruction in Pacific Palisades,” Acting United States Attorney Bill Essayli said in a statement. “While we cannot bring back what victims lost, we hope this criminal case brings some measure of justice to those affected by this horrific tragedy.”