A SUSPECTED arsonist accused of sparking the Palisades inferno blamed climate change for wildfires and mocked supporters of Donald Trump.
Cops arrested Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, for “maliciously” starting the most destructive inferno in Los Angeles’ history and then trying to cover his tracks.
Devastating fires erupted on January 7, stretching across more than 23,000 acres, destroying over 6,800 homes and businesses, and displacing thousands of families across Los Angeles County.
Rinderknecht allegedly set the fire on purpose and left it to smoulder unnoticed for days causing the deadly inferno, police said.
The French-born man has been charged with destruction of property by fire. If convicted, he faces a minimum of five years in federal prison.
It has now emerged that Rinderknecht regularly posted on Facebook about how global warming causes wildfires.
He also shared posts mocking President Trump and his supporters.
One of them included photos of Trump supporters apparently crying after he lost the 2020 election.
The alleged firebug also regularly shared articles with climate-alarmist headlines, the New York Post reports.
In August 2020, Rinderknecht shared a post from Joe Biden claiming Trump inherited a healthy economy from President Obama – but that his response to the COVID-19 pandemic “destroyed it”.
Rinderknecht was arrested at his home in Melbourne, Florida, on Tuesday as investigators recovered a disturbing ChatGPT-generated painting “depicting a burning city.”
Rinderknecht allegedly used the artificial intelligence chatbot to produce a “dystopian painting, showing in part a burning forest and a crowd fleeing from it,” Bill Essayli, the acting US Attorney for the Central District of California, said at a press conference on Wednesday.
Essayli said Rinderknecht, who lived in Pacific Palisades at the time, returned to the area after wrapping up his shift as an Uber driver on New Year’s Eve.
Two of Rinderknecht’s passengers told investigators that the driver appeared “agitated and angry” that night.
Rinderknecht had allegedly dropped off his final passenger in the area then proceeded to park his vehicle and walk up a trail.
Essayli said Rinderknecht started the fire that evening, but the flames burned slowly underground for about a week.
Then on January 7, strong winds rekindled embers, spreading above ground, leading to the widespread blaze across Pacific Palisades.
Rinderknecht reported the initial fire to authorities, fled the scene but eventually returned and watched as firefighters battled the blaze, taking video with his phone.
Essayli said investigators had identified Rinderknecht on January 24.
“During his interview, he lied about where he was when he first saw the Lachman fire, claiming he was at the bottom of the hiking trail,” said Essayli.
“Geolocation data for the 911 call showed he was standing above the fire, in a clearing nearly 30 feet from the blaze as it rapidly grew.
“As the world watched in horror as the Palisades fires burned, victims perished in the smoke and flames.
“Homes where cherished family memories and belongings were turned to rubble and ash.
“The iconic Palisades coast highway along Malibu looked like a warzone.”
Kenny Cooper, a special agent for the ATF’s San Francisco Field Division, said evidence determined the Palisades blaze was caused by an “intentionally set fire.”
“The fire was a holdover fire, meaning it was deeply seated in dense vegetation and roots and continued to burn undetected until catastrophic weather ensued, resulting in the Palisades Fire,” Cooper said.
Minutes before he allegedly set the fire, Rinderknecht went on YouTube and listened to the French rap song Un Zder, Un The by Josman.
The song’s lyrics, translated to English, speak about smoking weed to combat “despair and bitterness.”
“I feel like I’m nowhere,” the rapper sings in French before saying in the next line, “I’ll isolate myself later.”
Timeline of Jonathan Rinderknecht’s arrest
Prosecutors set out the following timeline that led to the arrest of accused arsonist Jonathan Rinderknecht.
December 31, 2024: Rinderknecht, who works as an Uber driver, drops off two passengers between 10:15 and 11:15, one of them in Pacific Palisades neighborhood.
January 1, 2025:
12:12 am – Environmental sensing platforms indicate a fire in the Palisades area that is later called the Lachman Fire. Rinderknecht tries to call 911 several times but can’t connect, prosecutors say. He finally reaches dispatch from the bottom of the hiking trail.
After 1 am – Rinderknecht records video of the scene. The Lachman Fire is supposedly put out.
January 7, 2025: A Santa Ana windstorm re-ignites the Lachman Fire and sparks the Palisades Fire, which goes on to kill 12 people and burn through 23,400 acres.
January 31, 2025: The Palisades Fire is contained.
October 7, 2025: Rinderknecht is arrested in Florida.
October 8, 2025: Charges against Rinderknecht are announced. He appears in court for the first time.
At another point in the song, Josman sings, “Imagine how much I’ve got in my head, I’m taking off, I’m moving up.”
The next line eerily continues, “Everything we burn is counted in grams.”
The lyrics are referring to drugs, but the song’s music video shows Josman lighting multiple objects on fire.
“He exited the car, walked up a nearby trail, took iPhone videos at a nearby hilltop, and listened to a rap song, whose music video included objects being lit on fire,” Essayli said, describing the track as a French rap song.
“The defendant had listened to this song and watched its music video repeatedly in the days leading up to the Lachman fire.”
Rinderknecht watched the fiery music video four times.
Rinderknecht was charged with destruction of property by means of fire.
He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years in prison and a maximum 20-year sentence, if convicted.
