Man Arrested On Arson Charges For Allegedly Igniting 34,000-Acre Wildfire In California

A man was arrested on arson charges Tuesday for allegedly igniting a wildfire in California, according to a police report from the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department (SBSD).

Justin Wayne Halstenberg was taken into custody and is being held on $80,000 bail after a team of local detectives and state fire marshals identified him as the suspect who started a fire in the city of Highland, California, that ultimately turned into a massive blaze known as the Line Fire, the SBSD report stated. The 34,000-acre wildfire began on Sep. 5 and has since spread rapidly through the mountains of San Bernardino due to a combination of warm weather and strong winds, with the blaze only 14% contained as of Tuesday night, according to The New York Times.

“Highland Station detectives, in collaboration with Cal Fire investigators, identified Justin Wayne Halstenberg as the suspect who started a fire in the area of Baseline Road and Alpin Street in the city of Highland, also known as the Line Fire, on September 5, 2024,”

📺 Embedded media — coming soon

Roughly 18,000 people have been forced to evacuate