Arson arrests
Four arrested for starting Pier Fire
Suspects also face vehicle theft charges
Four people have been arrested on suspicion of starting the 36,000-acre Pier Fire along Highway 190 which did $7 million in damage and cost more than $40 million to extinguish, law enforcement announced Thursday.
During a press conference at the new Tulare County Sheriff’s Headquarters on Akers Road in Visalia, Sheriff Mike Boudreaux said three men and a woman were arrested Tuesday and all face charges of felony arson and vehicle theft, added Tulare County District Attorney Tim Ward.
All four of the suspects are from Visalia, but one has ties to Sacramento and was working for a car rental business where the car found burned at the start of the Pier Fire on Aug. 29 had been stolen from a few days earlier.
California Highway Patrol Sgt. Chris Boudreaux said the 2017 Dodge Challenger was found along Highway 190 near the Stairs and had been deliberately set on fire. That set off the Pier Fire which burned for a month, did $7 million in damage and cost more than $40 million to suppress.
The fire forced the evacuation of 1,600 homes from nine mountain communities, including Springville and Camp Nelson, and seriously threatened the resort area of Sequoia Crest where Tulare County Fire Chief Charlie Norman said embers were falling between homes, but firefighters were able to save all the structures.
He also noted the fire was in the Tule River Canyon and posed a serious threat to residents and firefighters.
“This is one of those areas you drive by and think we hope we never have a fire here,” he said.
The fire closed Highway 190 for nearly a month and at one point had 2,000 personnel assigned to stop the flames.
The sheriff said deputies went door-to-door to warn residents to evacuate and proudly said there had been no reports of looting during the time residents were away from their homes.
The sheriff noted he lives within the fire area and many residents of the county have used that area for fishing, hunting and other activities. “This was personal to us,” the sheriff said of the fire.
Ward said in custody are Richard Anthony Renteria, 21, Isiac Nicholas Renteria Jr., 19, Osvaldo Esparza-guerrero, 20, and Breane Renee Ojeda, 21. Ojeda has since made bail. All but Isiac Renteria were arrested in Visalia. He was arrested in Sacramento.
Sgt. Boudreaux said Isiac Renteria is the cousin of Richard Renteria and he was the resident of Sacramento and worked for National Car Rental where the Challenger was taken.
According to Sgt. Boudreaux, the Challenger was stolen about Aug. 24 along with a 2017 Chevrolet Camaro. The Camaro was found partially stripped in Visalia a few days after the fire started.
Sgt. Boudreaux, who heads up the county’s vehicle theft task force, praised the efforts of Brian Adams, a fire investigator with the Sequoia National Forest, and others who helped to crack the case.
The four suspects all face eight counts, including car theft. They face a sentence of 15 years to life in prison and restitution of both the damages and cost to fight the fire, approximately $47 million.
Noting how difficult arson cases can be to crack, Sheriff Boudreaux said at the conclusion of the press conference, “This is where the good guys won.”
The suspects were all arraigned in the South County Justice Facility in Porterville.