Arson Suspected in Brush Fires Near Freeway

Police were investigating a series of brush fires along the San Diego Freeway late Thursday that may have been started by an arsonist.

Four small fires broke out shortly before midnight within half a mile of one another, said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Jim Wells. Less than three acres were burned and the flames were extinguished within an hour.

Because of the proximity of the fires to one another, authorities suspected arson.

Witnesses said they saw a man in a white pickup truck throwing objects, possibly flares, from his vehicle, but those reports had not been verified, Wells said.