Third County Firefighter Being Investigated in Arson Case

A third firefighter with the Orange County Fire Authority is under investigation by the county district attorney’s office in connection with an arson fire in an abandoned Yorba Linda house, a county prosecutor said Thursday.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Mike Fell said Rob Gabel is under investigation along with Ken Dobbins, 38, and Robert Schickel Jr., 29.

Gabel and Dobbins were volunteer firefighters at the Yorba Linda station who have since been dropped from the list, officials said. Schickel, a full-time firefighter at the Stanton station and a volunteer at Yorba Linda, has been placed on administrative leave.

The three are suspected of setting fire to the vacant house on Aug. 7, 1993.

Fire authority investigators have turned over the case to the district attorney’s office to determine whether charges should be filed against the three men. On Thursday, Fell said no decision has been made yet.

“I have not filed charges against any of the three men,” Fell said. “I’m still reviewing the file and no determination has been made yet on whether charges will be filed.”

Dobbins was arrested in early December on suspicion of setting the house fire. He was released on bail from Orange County Jail and is scheduled to be arraigned Jan. 22.

In addition to being investigated in connection with the house fire, Schickel is charged with setting his own car afire in Riverside County last year.

Schickel’s attorney, Ronald Brower, said his client “denies torching the car in Riverside,” and has told Brower that he wants to “fight this all the way.”

Schickel was placed on paid administrative leave, a day before his arrest on suspicion of the car fire, officials said.