BUTTE COUNTY – More than a month after the Thompson fire After fire destroyed more than a dozen homes in the Oroville neighborhood of Butte County, Cal Fire officials arrested a man on suspicion of starting the blaze.
Cal Fire said law enforcement determined within the first 24 hours that the fire was caused by arson and identified a suspect. Officers then kept the suspect under surveillance as they worked to close the case.
Cal Fire officials said they arrested Spencer Anderson, 26, of Oroville, on Thursday on suspicion of starting the fire. He was booked into jail on charges of arson in wilderness areas and structures with a penalty of destroying five or more inhabited structures.
Andreson is being held in jail without bail and is due to appear in court on Monday.
The Thompson Fire broke out on July 2 near Cherokee Road and destroyed more than 37,000 acres, 13 homes and about 17,000 people.
Harold Pulley, a 61-year-old Oroville man, was arrested a few days after the fire began for lighting a backfire hours after the fire started. He was accused of using a propane torch to burn about a quarter acre in a high-risk area.
The fire also took the Hyatt Power Plant offline, and Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency.
