Banning man charged with arson in fires that burned 600 acres
An alleged serial arsonist accused of burning more than 600 acres in Riverside and San Bernardino counties was charged Wednesday with 13 felony counts of arson, prosecutors said.
Stephen Taylor Rutherford, 47, was charged in connection with nine fires that he allegedly set since September 2011, including one last month that burned through more than 500 acres and damaged four properties, according to a statement from the Riverside County district attorney’s office.
Rutherford, who lives in Banning, was arrested last month after an examination by state fire investigators who found him through surveillance footage and, ultimately, by placing GPS trackers on his vehicles, prosecutors said. He was set to be arraigned Wednesday. If convicted, he could face a maximum penalty of 80 years, four months in state prison.
Riverside Dist. Atty. Paul E. Zellerbach told reporters that Rutherford’s arrest demonstrated the “serious and continual threat arsonists pose to our communities. The dangers serial arsonists like this can bring include significant loss of land, homes and even life.”
Rutherford is accused of setting four fires over six days in September 2011 that collectively burned just under 100 acres in Riverside County. On Oct. 22 of that year, he allegedly set two fires, burning about 30 acres. A year later, on Sept. 9, 2012, he allegedly set a fire that burned about four acres.
The day that prosecutors said was his most destructive was Friday, when he allegedly set a fire near Banning that burned five acres. Prosecutors said he then crossed into San Bernardino County to Mentone, where he allegedly set a fire that burned 534 acres, damaging four properties, including two homes.
Although the final fire occurred in San Bernardino County, he will be tried for that fire, along with the others, in Riverside County, prosecutors said.
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