An unscrupulous couple was arrested on Saturday January 18, 2025 in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles County (United States). The 31-year-old man and his 44-year-old wife are suspected of posing as firefighters in order to enter the fire-ravaged evacuation zone without authorization. According to the Los Angeles Times the two suspects hoped to deceive the authorities by showing up at this disaster site with an old fire truck. But that was without taking into account the presence of a police crew nearby.
A suspicious vehicle
“An LAPD patrol unit was driving through the Palisades Fire area when they noticed this fire truck that didn’t appear legitimate”explained the police in a press release published on Facebook. And for good reason: purchased at auction, the vehicle they had in front of them had not been in service for 30 years, our colleagues point out.
The authorities immediately decided to verify the identity of the occupants of this truck. A quick search allowed them to learn that the driver had served five years in prison for a series of arsons committed between 2013 and 2017. Undaunted, the man presented an Oregon license while claiming that he and his partner were from the Roaring River Fire Department.
A non-existent fire department
-“Upon further investigation, officers learned that the name of this service was not that of a legitimate agency and that the truck had been purchased at auction”specifies the press release. The couple was arrested and the truck was impounded. Inside was a map showing the areas affected by the fires, radios tuned to the frequencies of real firefighters, and tools that could be used to commit burglaries. The couple is expected to go to trial soon.
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A few days earlier, another 34-year-old fake firefighter was arrested in Malibu. He will be prosecuted for receiving stolen property, identity theft, illegal use of a badge and unauthorized entry into a closed disaster area.
Since the fires began, at least nine people have been charged with looting abandoned homes. As a reminder, a new fire broke out in the north-east of the “city of Angels” on Wednesday January 22. More than 30,000 residents received an evacuation order.
