Less than an hour after finding a guard shack burned to theground in the middle of a wildfire that would soon grow to 22square miles, firefighters found a sport utility vehicle stuck inthe road. Inside the truck, they found Keystone beer cans, a gascan and a lighter, according to court documents.
The truck was registered to the father of Jeremy Ortiz, one oftwo men who on Friday pleaded not guilty to aggravated arson, courtdocuments state. Jeremy Ortiz and friend Jesse Durbin are accusedof starting the Eagle fire on July 21.
Ortiz, 23, a member of the Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla Indians,was arrested Thursday in a joint law enforcement operation oncharges of aggravated arson and forest land arson, authoritiessaid.
Durbin, 23 and also a tribal member, was already in the Vistajail on a vehicle theft charge when he was arrested in connectionwith setting the large fire. No one was injured in the blaze.
The two men were in a Vista courtroom Friday, where they pleadednot guilty to charges related to the blaze. They are each beingheld in lieu of $2 million bail.
If convicted of aggravated arson, each faces 10 years to life inprison, Deputy District Attorney Terri Perez said.
When the fire grew out of control and homes were threatened,Ortiz’s family home was among the first to be evacuated, accordingto court documents.
Ortiz was a former employee —- in good standing —- of EagleRock Training Center, a private company operating a trainingfacility on land leased from the tribe. The company uses the sitefor military training and offers it to Hollywood film crews, and itowned the guard shack where the fire started.
In a statement issued Friday, the company said Ortiz had”previously resigned his position at the ERTC IdentificationCheckpoint and was eligible for rehire.”
The blaze at the guard shack, which sits at the entrance of theEagle Rock center, grew to 14,100 acres. It took 2,000 firefightersmore than a week and $15 million to extinguish.
Authorities said the fire started along Eagles Nest Road nearCamino San Ignacio, about five miles east of Warner Springs.
The motive for setting the fire remains unknown. But anaffidavit seeking permission to arrest the two men laid out thefindings that led investigators to suspect Ortiz and Durbin.
The sworn affidavit by James Garrett, an investigator from theCalifornia Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, was filed incourt Wednesday. It states that firefighters responded to the fireat the guard shack about 10:37 p.m. July 21. They found the shackdestroyed and about 30 feet of surrounding vegetation burned. Nearthe guard shack was an empty can of Keystone beer.
A little more than an hour later and less than half a mile fromthe shack, authorities found a Ford Expedition stuck and blockingthe road, Garrett wrote. The hood was still warm. Inside the cabwas a red plastic fuel container, a Bic lighter and cans ofKeystone beer, he wrote.
The Ford’s windshield was cracked and had red stains thatappeared to be blood, Garrett wrote.
As the fire spread, nearby homes were evacuated, includingOrtiz’s, where Ortiz and Durbin were found. Police drove them tosafety while firefighters saved the residence, Garrett wrote.
Ortiz admitted that he poured the gasoline and said Durbin litit on fire, according to the affidavit. Durbin, however, said Ortizwanted to set the fire and was the one to burn the shack down.
Ortiz reportedly told investigators that he had decided to burndown the shack when he and Durbin were passing by. But Ortiz blamedDurbin for smashing a security camera they found at the guardshack, Garrett wrote.
Investigators found that camera at Ortiz’s home.
According to Garrett, Durbin —- who had a cut on his knuckle—- told investigators that he had punched the windshield of thesport utility vehicle when it got stuck.
Residents in Warner Springs had expressed concerns aboutwildfires starting on the reservation because of the militarytraining occurring at the Eagle Rock Training Facility.
After the two men pleaded not guilty Friday, Eagle Rock sent astatement to the media. The company, which found and reported thefire, said it was first concerned with the safety of thereservation residents.
Second, the company said, it wanted to know how the firestarted, because that the guard shack had no electricity, generatoror other source that could have caused a spontaneous fire.
No training was taking place when the fire started, nor was anyscheduled for that week or the following week, the companysaid.
Eagle Rock said it was “saddened and extremely disheartened tolearn the fire had been deliberately set and was being investigatedas arson.”
The fire spread east from the reservation to Anza-Borrego DesertState Park.
