Authorities seek arsonist in Riverside County fires

Late on Oct. 22, as firefighters fought Santa Ana wind-driven fires in four other counties, an arsonist was carefully setting three fires, minutes apart, in the foothill community of De Luz just outside Temecula.

Firefighters pounced on the blazes, known as the Rosa fires, which began in 30- to 35-mph winds and forced more than 150 residents to evacuate. Riverside County fire officials said Thursday that, in those conditions, it was luck that they were able to extinguish the blazes before homes were damaged.

“Resources were already stretched. It’s obvious the individual or individuals responsible for these fires knew that information,” Battalion Chief Tim Williams said at a news conference Thursday in Perris.

Riverside County fire officials have announced a $100,000 reward for information leading to a conviction, with the money provided by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the governor’s office.

Authorities have not identified any suspects, but are seeking information about a white man about 28 to 35 years old with light-brown hair who was seen driving a gray or blue pickup truck in the area when the fires began.

Fire officials unveiled a composite sketch of the man during the news conference at the Riverside County-California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection headquarters in Perris. They would not discuss the evidence found at the scene, which has been sent to the state Department of Justice for analysis.

County officials are being especially vigilant in pursuing arson leads after the string of arsons that led to the devastating Esperanza fire on Oct. 26, 2006, which killed five U.S. Forest Service firefighters as it burned more than 40,000 acres west of Palm Springs.

Riverside County Fire Chief John R. Hawkins alluded to that fire during Thursday’s news conference.

“As I said on the day of the Esperanza fire . . . we’re going to get him and he’s going to go away,” Hawkins said.

A Beaumont mechanic, Raymond Lee Oyler, has been charged with murder in the deaths of the five firefighters last year, as well as arson in 21 other fires set in the San Gorgonio Pass between May and October 2006. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. His trial is expected to begin next year.

The Rosa fires were started before 11 p.m. Oct. 22 at three locations in the De Luz area: Via Santa Rosa at Via Peregrino, Via Vaquero at Calle La Paz, and Via Barranca at Sandia Creek.

Anyone with information is asked to call (888) ATF-FIRE (283-3473).

maeve.reston@latimes.com