Suspect in O.C. Arson Described as ‘Good Kid’ : Investigation: Friends, coach can’t believe he would have deliberately set destructive Anaheim Hills blaze.

A 17-year-old high school dropout who is being held on suspicion of setting a fire that caused an estimated $1 million in damage was described Tuesday as a “good kid” and a talented athlete who would not have deliberately created such devastation.

“He’s never been in trouble. He’s never even had a traffic ticket. This was an accident,” said a woman at the boy’s home in Anaheim Hills who asked not to be identified. “He’s just a good kid. It could have been any of us.”

Fire investigators, however, said at a news conference Tuesday that they believe the Oct. 26 blaze that began on Stage Coach Road near the border of Villa Park and Orange was clearly arson.

“This is not an accidental fire,” said Anaheim Fire Investigator Mike Feeney. “At the very least, it was reckless.”

The suspect, whose name was being withheld because of his age, remained in Orange County Juvenile Hall. He was expected to be arraigned today.

At Anaheim’s North Net Training Facility, Feeney and other fire officials declined to say whether the teen-ager intentionally set the blaze that damaged 29 homes and charred 750 acres of brush.

The question of the youth’s intent is critical because it may determine whether he will be tried as an adult and how severe his punishment might be if he is convicted.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Carl Biggs said late Tuesday that he was undecided about whether to file an arson charge or the lesser charge of recklessly setting a fire.

“I do have some thoughts,” he said, declining to elaborate but adding that it was possible that no charges would be filed. He said he would know better after reviewing investigators’ reports, which he had yet to receive.

If it is determined by the district attorney’s office and investigators that the fire was deliberately set, Biggs said he would request that the suspect be tried as an adult.

Anaheim Fire Chief Jeff Bowman said the courts will have to decide whether the suspect’s parents will be held liable for the damage caused by the fire, estimated at $1 million.

Even though the suspect’s name was withheld by authorities, his identity seemed to be common knowledge in the community.

Students at Canyon High School in Anaheim Hills, which the teen-ager attended before apparently dropping out this year in what would have been his senior year, said he was not a troublemaker.

One 17-year-old, who said he had known the suspect fairly well when both were active on the wrestling team in their freshman and sophomore years, said he had lost contact with him recently.

The student, who would talk only on condition that he not be identified, said the suspect seemed to have drifted on to another group of friends. But he said he could not believe the youth had set the fire deliberately.

The wrestling coach at Canyon said the suspect was a “good kid” and a talented middle-weight wrestler who helped the school’s teams win several area tournaments before a back injury forced him to give up the sport during his sophomore year.

“He always listened. He never talked back. He was a very coachable kid,” said the coach, who also agreed to speak only if he was not identified. “Knowing this kid the way I did, there’s no way I can believe that he deliberately set the fire. Even if he was involved, I would stake my life on the fact that he didn’t mean to start this fire.”

Canyon High Principal Ralph Jameson said he knew little about the specifics of the investigation. But he confirmed that two Anaheim Fire Department investigators were on campus Monday, apparently tracking down friends and acquaintances of the suspect.

“From what they told me, I believe they were trying to find people who might have been witnesses,” Jameson said.

Fire officials said they are confident that they have a good arson case. They said the suspect, two juvenile girls and two 18-year-old men were drinking beer and smoking at a popular hangout in the hillsides off Queens Drive in Anaheim Hills when the fire was started.

Arson investigators explained at Tuesday’s news conference that the break in the investigation came when they received a tip from a teen-age girl who was not at the outdoor party but had heard about it.

“There was enough information there that I received from this individual that gave me a lot of facts about the fire, and there was too many coincidences not to be a good lead on that one,” said Rich Alarcon, a fire investigator for the city of Orange. He said the girl gave him the names of those at the party.

Arson investigator Feeney said the tip was an incredible break.

“Loose lips sink ships,” he said.

Feeney added that investigators had been deluged with tips, many of which were unfruitful, and investigators were concerned that the girl’s call might be “bogus.”

“But you have to check them all out,” he said.

The suspect was arrested Monday, just days after the tip was received.

During an interview with investigators, the boy said he merely dropped a match and did not mean to cause the devastating wildfire, sources said. He told them he was “just screwing around” when it happened, sources said.

Fire officials refused Tuesday to comment on the teen-ager’s version of how the fire was started. They also declined to say what evidence they have from the scene that links him to the fire.

The two 18-year-old men who were at the party were detained for questioning Monday but were released after investigators concluded that they were witnesses and not accomplices.

Fire Chief Bowman, however, said he “would not rule out” criminal charges, such as trespassing, against the other individuals who were at the hangout.

“They were in a posted no-entry area,” he said. “There was a sign and it was fenced. They were not to be in that area. . . . We post (with warnings) the entire hill and canyon area where it’s rugged terrain, from roughly May to November every year, to tell people that it’s off-limits, it’s a dangerous fire area and they’re not to go in there.”

Both Canyon High students and residents near the Anaheim Hills neighborhood where the fire started said the area is a popular spot for students from Canyon and other high schools to meet, ride dirt bikes, drink and smoke.

Resident Rachelle Elders said the end of Queens Drive, where a partly blocked dirt road snakes up into the scrub-covered hills, has long acted as a magnet for young people. Their loud weekend parties have prompted frequent calls to the police, she said.

“The kids are always up there, drinking, riding motorcycles and playing loud music,” said Elders, who has lived in the area for three years. “It’s a real problem for everyone in the area.”

In other fire-related developments, the Orange County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved an emergency ordinance that allows owners of homes destroyed or damaged by the recent wildfires to get quicker property tax relief.

The supervisors also offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for sparking the fires in Orange County.

“It is my hope that this will provide an additional inducement for people to provide information to authorities,” said Supervisor Gaddi H. Vasquez.

The emergency action on property taxes allows the county assessor to immediately begin inspecting property with more than $5,000 damage without a written application from the property owner. Under the previous county tax law, property owners could get relief from damage only after applying for it within 60 days of a calamity.

Times staff writers Jeff Brazil, Mark Landsbaum and Eric Young contributed to this report.

* NO ARSON CLUES FOUND: Man suspected of threats is still under investigation. A3

* LAGUNA FIRE CLAIMS: The total of $435 million is far higher than expected. D1