Garbage truck driver arrested in connection to 2019 Sandalwood Fire
A 38-year-old garbage truck driver
has been arrested in connection with the Sandalwood Fire, a 2019 blaze that burned more than 1,000 acres and killed two people in Calimesa, Cal Fire officials announced Monday,
Antonio Ornelas-Velazquez has been charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter and one count of unlawfully causing a fire that causes great bodily injury, officials said.
Ornelas-Velazquez was taken into custody in Desert Hot Springs on Saturday, according to Riverside County jail records.
Ornelas-Velazquez is accused of operating a garbage truck that dumped a burning load of trash next to dry vegetation, leading to the blaze that destroyed 72 structures and damaged another 16, officials said. The embers were picked up by high Santa Ana winds blowing through the area on a day when a red flag warning was in effect.