Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : 2 Teen-Age Boys Accused of Arson in 5-Acre Grass Fire
Authorities arrested two teen-age boys Wednesday moments after an off-duty sheriff’s deputy watched them start a five-acre grass fire in a vacant field in Lancaster, officials said.
There were no injuries.
About 50 children and supervisors at the Lancaster Parent Co-Op Nursery, 5061 W. Ave. K, were evacuated, but the blaze did not threaten the school or other nearby structures, Los Angeles County Fire Department spokesman Angel Montoya said.
The boys, a 13-year-old from Palmdale and a 16-year-old from Lancaster, were released to their parents after being booked on arson charges at the Antelope Valley sheriff’s station, Sheriff’s Sgt. Bob Denham said.
About 20 firefighters extinguished the blaze in about 20 minutes, Montoya said.
The incident started after Deputy Brent Meek spotted the youths starting the fire in a field near Avenue K and Gadsden Avenue about 11:10 a.m., Denham said.
Meek, who was on his way to work at the Antelope Valley station, caught one of the youths at the scene but the other one fled, Denham said.
That youth was captured by a man outside Arby’s Roast Beef Restaurant on Sierra Highway, Denham said.
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