Man Indicted on Federal Arson Charges in Connection With Lachman Fire That Preceded Deadly Palisades Fire

Federal prosecutors have charged 30-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht with setting the Lachman fire that became the precursor to the Palisades fire, which killed 12 people, destroyed thousands of homes and caused billions of dollars in damage in January 2025.

A grand jury indicted him on charges of property destruction by means of fire, arson affecting property used in interstate commerce, and timber set afire. If convicted on all counts, Rinderknecht could face a statutory maximum sentence of 45 years in federal prison.

Rinderknecht was arrested in October 2025. He has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled to stand trial on June 8 with jury selection. Court documents were submitted ahead of trial in the case against him.

Washington Examiner reported that federal prosecutors stated Rinderknecht was motivated by anti-capitalist beliefs. Court documents indicate he resented the rich and felt “enslaved” by them. When asked by investigators why someone might commit arson in the Pacific Palisades, Rinderknecht responded that it would be out of resentment of the rich enjoying their money as ‘we’re being enslaved by them’ and compared such an act of ‘desperation’ to the murder for which Mangione was charged.

Rinderknecht admired Luigi Mangione, who is accused of assassinating UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Federal officials said he was obsessed with Mangione to the point of “fixation,” scoured the internet for “Mangione-related news,” looked online about “free[ing]” Luigi Mangione and sought out content on “killing all the billionaires” in the weeks leading up to the fire.

Court filings show Rinderknecht searched “lets take down all the billionaires” and “reddit lets kill all the billionaires” between December 12 and 13, 2024.

He worked as an Uber driver. On December 31, 2024, and again on January 1, 2025, he ranted to Uber passengers about capitalism, vigilante violence, and Luigi Mangione. Uber passengers on those dates described Rinderknecht as angry, intense, driving erratically, and ranting about being ‘pissed off at the world,’ Luigi Mangione, capitalism, and vigilantism, according to trial attorneys for the Justice Department.

He allegedly started a small brush fire in the mountains known as the Lachman fire on the night of December 31, 2024 into January 1, 2025. The Lachman fire was set on land owned by the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority. The Palisades fire was a “holdover” fire from the Lachman fire that began just after midnight on January 1, 2025.

Although firefighters quickly suppressed the initial blaze, it continued to burn underground within the root structure of dense vegetation. Heavy winds eventually caused the fire to surface and spread, turning it into the destructive Palisades fire. Law enforcement determined Rinderknecht set the Lachman fire based on witness statements, video surveillance, and geolocation data.

The sequence began when Rinderknecht, already expressing intense resentment toward wealthy residents, ignited the brush on conservation authority land in the mountains above the affluent Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles. What started as a contained fire overnight became one of the most destructive wildfires in the city's history days later.

““Many of defendant’s Uber passengers on December 31, 2024 and January 1, 2025, described defendant as angry, intense, driving erratically, and ranting about being ‘pissed off at the world’ and Luigi Mangione, capitalism, and vigilantism.””

“— trial attorneys for the Justice Department, in the government’s trial memorandum”

““We’re being enslaved by them.””

“— Jonathan Rinderknecht, responding to investigators about possible motives for arson in Pacific Palisades, per federal prosecutors The case draws a direct line from online fixation and verbal outbursts in late 2024 to the physical act that prosecutors say triggered catastrophe in early 2025. Rinderknecht’s alleged actions unfolded against the backdrop of his documented admiration for Mangione and repeated expressions of class-based rage while driving passengers through Los Angeles. Federal prosecutors laid out the timeline and digital trail in court filings submitted ahead of the June trial.”