29-year-old man is accused of starting blaze that killed 12.

United States Attorney Bill Essayli points to images on the TV screen in L.A. on Wednesday. Jonathan Rinderknecht allegedly asked ChatGPT to create dystopian images of a burning city months prior to the Palisades fire being set. Dean Musgrove - staff photographer.

By NATHANIEL PERCY, CRISTOBAL REYES AND TONY SAAVEDRA | STAFF WRITERS

A 29-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of igniting a blaze that led to the Palisades fire, which killed 12 people and damaged or destroyed thousands of structures during an uncommon windstorm that swept through Southern California, federal authorities announced Wednesday.

Jonathan Rinderknecht, who was arrested Tuesday, was charged in a federal complaint with starting the Lachman fire, a small blaze in Pacific Palisades, on New Year's Day, U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said during a downtown Los Angeles news conference.

Despite the fire being believed to have been put out by Los Angeles city firefighters, it "continued to smolder and burn underground within the root structure of the dense vegetation" - reigniting on Jan. 7 during heavy winds to become the Palisades fire, "one of the most destructive fires in Los Angeles history," he said.

Hours after the news conference, in Orlando, Florida in a federal courtroom, Rinderknecht was ushered in with chains and a plain gray T-shirt as reporters crowded the gallery for his first court appearance.

He spoke in single-word answers to Magistrate Judge Nathan W. Hill's questions, with his possible bond left undecided during the brief hearing. Federal Public Defender Aziza Hawthorne requested a hearing for today.

Chains clanking, Rinderknecht was then led out of the courtroom.

He is charged with destruction of property by means of fire. If convicted as charged, Rinderknecht would face five to 25 years in federal prison.

Robert Shellhouse, 64, of Hart, Michigan, said he knew Rinderknecht through a relative and didn't trust him.

"He did some dirty things to some people. If I don't see him again, that's not a problem," Shellhouse said. 'I'm thankful that he is no longer around. I'm sorry for the people of California, now they're suffering because of him."

Shellhouse wouldn't give any details, other than to say Rinderknecht appeared to have anger issues and once put his fist through a wall, which Shellhouse's relative had to pay for.

Shellhouse said Rinderknecht was raised in France and lived for a while in Grand Rapids, Michigan, as well as in Florida. He said Rinderknecht spoke fluent French. He said Rinderknecht's mother was a U.S. citizen and his father was a citizen of France.

On the night of Dec. 31, Rinderknecht is accused of dropping off an Uber customer in a residential area of the Pacific Palisades, driving toward the Skull Rock trailhead, then trying unsuccessfully to phone a friend via Facebook Messenger, according to Essayli and the affidavit. Rinderknecht then allegedly walked up the trail to the Hidden Buddha clearing and listened to a French rap song before starting the Lachman fire using "an open flame," Essayli said.

Rinderknecht was, at one time, a resident of the Pacific Palisades and had a former friend who lived in the same home as him about a block away from where he parked to head up the trail. He moved to Florida and lives in Melbourne there. Essayli said it's possible that Rinderknecht could face additional charges.

Witnesses told authorities he was driving for Uber that night and appeared "agitated and angry," Essayli said. Rinderknecht allegedly listened to a French rap song, with an accompanying music video showing objects burning, several times in the days leading up to the fire.

"It took the defendant several tries to contact 911 to report the fire," Essayli said, because he didn't have cell service.

After walking back down the hill, Rinderknecht tried again and reached a dispatcher to report the fire, but by that time another resident had already reported the blaze, the affidavit says.

While on the phone with 911, Rinderknecht allegedly typed into ChatGPT, "Are you at fault if a fire is lift (sic) because of your cigarettes," according to the affidavit.

He then fled in his car but turned around and went back when he saw firefighters, authorities say. He allegedly took video of firefighters battling the blaze on his phone.

In an interview with authorities, Rinderknecht allegedly lied to them and said he was farther down the hillside, but his cellphone location record shows he was standing in the Hidden Buddha clearing, 30 feet from where the fire ignited, at the time he first started calling 911, Essayli said.

The former friend of Rinderknecht who tried to call that night told investigators that he and Rinderknecht in general had spent a lot of time together at the small clearing at the top of the hill.

At one point during his interview, Rinderknecht told investigators that he offered to help firefighters battle the blaze.

The affidavit notes that only one person was seen in the area on video around the time the Lachman fire started.

The Palisades fire ignited about 10:30 a.m. on Jan. 7, sending firefighters to the Palisades hillside as winds howled at upward of 80 mph. By the time it was contained on Jan. 31, the fire had scorched more than 23,000 acres and had damaged or destroyed more than 7,000 structures.

Initially, investigators looked into a theory of a previous fire on New Year's Day in the area of Skull Rock, a popular hiking area, reigniting.

Los Angeles city firefighters had said the Lachman fire was started by fireworks in the area shortly after midnight, but fire officials reported they had stopped forward progress of that blaze around 3:30 a.m. and, about an hour later reported that firefighters had fully contained the fire.

By Jan. 17, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives had sent 15 investigators from around the country to probe the cause of the Palisades fire, with one team handling analysis at the scene and another focusing on gathering information, including surveillance footage, digital evidence and witness statements.

While being interviewed on Jan. 24 by investigators, they noticed that Rinderknecht's carotid artery would "pulsate and become visible whenever they asked Rinderknecht a question about how the fire started or who started it," the affidavit says.

Months prior to the fire being set, Rinderknecht asked ChatGPT to come up with the dystopian image of the burning city and, in November, allegedly typed into ChatGPT that he "literally burnt the Bible that I had. It felt amazing. I felt so liberated."

In August 2024, Rinderknecht allegedly wrote to a family member that he had "Burned the Bible I had literally," the affidavit says.

The Palisades fire broke out about 20 feet south of the perimeter of the Lachman fire, the affidavit says, adding that all other possible causes, including campfires or smoking, lightning, power lines and refraction were ruled out.

Rinderknecht was not on the Uber app at the time of the fire, according to a statement provided by Uber, but the company worked with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to determine the driver's whereabouts on and around Jan. 1 and quickly removed his access from the platform after finding out about his suspected involvement.

"More than nine months ago, our city faced one of the most devastating periods our region had ever seen," L.A. Mayor Karen Bass said. "Lives were tragically lost. Thousands of homes were destroyed. Our heroic firefighters fought the blaze valiantly with no rest. Each day that families are displaced is a day too long and as we are working tirelessly to bring Angelenos home, we are also working towards closure and towards justice - and today is a step forward in that process."

Staff reporter Madeline Armstrong contributed to this report.