L.A. County DA Hochman to announce wildfire looting, arson charges

Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman is set to announce charges Monday against the suspects in several recent arrests for arson and looting.

Hochman will be joined at a 2 p.m. news conference by L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna, L.A. Police Chief Jim McDonnell and others.

The announcement will include charges against a group of people accused of residential looting in the city of Pacific Palisades and arson charges against a man in the city of Azusa, the DA’s Office stated.

Dozens of arrests were made in the days following the eruption of the Palisades and Eaton fires.

The Santa Monica Police Department announced the arrests of 39 people within evacuation zones between Jan. 7 and Jan. 12, with 10 of those being for burglary.

None of the 39 people arrested were Santa Monica residents.

The arson suspect has been identified by Azusa police as a transient named Jose Carranza-Escobar. He was seen “standing next to the flames” and was promptly detained.

Carranza-Escobar, whose last known address was in Azusa, later admitted to starting the fire, police said.