Nine charged for looting in California fire zones

Nine charged for looting in California fire zones
Nine charged for looting in California fire zones

Prosecutors charged nine people with looting in areas wrecked by the devastating Palisades and Eaton fires, and accused another man of intentionally setting a blaze in an Azusa park during last week’s firestorm.

One trio of men is accused of stealing $200,000 worth of valuables from a home in Mandeville Canyon, while another group is accused of stealing personal property, including an Emmy award, from an Altadena home during the Eaton Fire, according to Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman.

“Let me be clear: If you exploit this tragedy to prey on victims of these deadly fires, we will find you and we will prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law,” Hochman said.

The charges filed involved three separate alleged looting incidents in the Pacific Palisades and Altadena, where fires have burned a combined 35,000 acres and destroyed more than 12,000 structures. At least 25 people have died, but that number is expected to rise.

Meanwhile firefighters are battling a new blaze in the coastal town of Ventura, northwest of Los Angeles, as officials warned of “extreme fire danger” in the area with the strong winds that fuelled last week’s wildfires set to return.

The National Weather Service has issued “red flag warnings” for much of southern California, from San Luis Obispo to San Diego, saying the areas “have a high risk of fire growth if a fire starts”.

It has also issued a “Particularly Dangerous Situation red flag warning” for several areas in the Ventura and Los Angeles counties, describing the alert as for “the extreme of the extreme fire weather scenarios”.

Biden has increased federal funding for the fire response for the next 180 days, while Newson, the California governor, says he will seek $2.5bn in additional money to help Los Angeles respond to and recover from the firestorms.