LOS ANGELES – A suspect was in custody Friday for allegedly setting a series of vehicle fires in the Sunland-Tujunga area earlier this year.
Guadalupe Resendiz, 37, was arrested Monday and booked on suspicion of arson, according to the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles Fire Department.
Resendiz was being held on $400,000 bail, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department reported.
According to the LAPD, the fires were reported between February and May. Authorities announced the arrest at a news conference at LAPD headquarters Friday morning.
The investigation was conducted by the LAPD and the LAFD.
“Residents of the Sunland/Tujunga area noticed an above average number of fires in the recent months, often observing columns of smoke rising from various neighborhoods,” according to an LAFD statement.
“With at least 20 automobile fires since February, investigators discovered some of them were intentionally set,” according to the LAFD. “LAFD’s Arson/Counter-Terrorism Unit interviewed witnesses, combed through debris, and examined evidence for months in an attempt to connect these incidents to the person responsible, in partnership with LAPD Major Crimes Division.”
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office has charged Resendiz with six counts of “arson of property,” according to the fire department.
Anyone with information on the case was urged to call the LAFD Arson Tip Line at 213-893-9850 or send information via email at [email protected].
