Alleged Spokane arsonist linked to previous fires

Utility workers help clear obstacles at a burned home during the Old Trails Fire in Spokane, Washington

(Image credit: Josh Edelson / AFP via Getty Images)

What happened

A Spokane resident charged with first-degree arson for allegedly starting the biggest of three wildfires surrounding Washington state’s second-largest city was questioned by police during two fire investigations last year, according to court documents released Tuesday. Aaron Farinacci, who was arrested and made his first court appearance earlier this week, served nearly a decade in prison in Arizona for fatally shooting his father during an argument over washing dishes. Spokane’s three fires, which have destroyed more than 700 buildings, are “ranked as the top firefighting priority in the U.S.,” Reuters said.

Two sheriff’s deputies stopped Farinacci, 37, near the fast-growing Old Trails Fire on Saturday, but they were “unaware” of his “prior fire-related contacts,” The Associated Press said. Spokane County Sheriff John Nowels said Farinacci was carrying waterproof matches, a butane lighter and cigarettes. Nowels credited local resident Paul Child, 64, for noticing and reporting Farinacci’s suspicious behavior at the site where the fire began. When smoke appeared 10 to 15 minutes after he saw Farinacci bending over the grass and acting nervous, “my immediate thought was that SOB started a fire,” Child told The Spokesman-Review.