California Man Who Set A Fire Near Yosemite Is Arrested, Police Say

Friday, a 71-year-old Califonia man was arrested for allegedly starting a fire in Northern California that wrecked more than 125 homes near Yosemite National Park, police said.

California Man Who Set A Fire Near Yosemite Is Arrested, Police Say (PHOTO: New York Daily News)

An Elderly California Man Arrested On Suspicion Of Starting Fire

Edward Fredrick Wackerman, 71, of Mariposa, was accused of allegedly starting last that destroyed  Oak Fire in the Sierra Nevada.

On Friday afternoon, the Mariposa County Sheriff’s Office stated that the California man was facing multiple felony charges of suspicion of aggravated arson, arson that forces great bodily injury, and arson driving damage or destruction of inhabited structures. Further details regarding what led to the arrest have not been provided.

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Edward Fredrick Wackerman Was Identified Person Responsible For Igniting The Fire

The fire was first reported on July 22, destroyed  127 homes and 66 outbuildings, and burned over 19,000 acres of vegetation, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Moreover, three firefighters were injured during the incident.

A spokesperson for Cal Fire’s Madera-Mariposa-Merced Unit  Jaime Williams, claimed that Wackerman was identified as the person responsible for igniting the fire through an extensive and multi-agency investigation.

His arrest was the result of a collaborative effort that included Cal Fire, the Mariposa County Sheriff’s Office, the county’s district attorney’s office, California state authorities, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Williams said.

The Oak Fire was one of several “significant wildfires” fires that swept through California in 2022, according to Cal Fire.

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