Aaron Farinacci Confessed Planning Old Trails Fire Two Weeks Before Spokane Blaze

Man charged with arson in Spokane, Washington, told police he planned wildfire for weeks Man charged with arson in Spokane, Washington, told police he planned wildfire for weeks A man charged with starting one of the wildfires in Spokane, Washington, that have destroyed hundreds of buildings planned the crime for weeks and researched when the weather would be best for igniting it, police said. In an interview after his arrest, Aaron Farinacci said “fire is powerful, beautiful, and that things that go through fire experience a kind of rebirth,” Spokane County Detective Michael Drapeau wrote in a court filing Wednesday. Farinacci, 37, is charged with starting the Old Trails fire, one of three blazes in the Spokane area that have burned more than 850 buildings, destroying whole neighborhoods and streets. Tens of thousands of people were forced to evacuate and many still can’t return home. No deaths or serious injuries have been reported. Farinacci is also charged in connection with four smaller fires ignited in the summer of 2025 and last month. He was scheduled to be arraigned on five first-degree arson charges Thursday, but his lawyer asked for a competency evaluation before he enters a plea. Spokane Superior Court Judge Jeremy Schmidt said he would review that request. He set bond for $2 million, ruling that Farinacci was a risk to community safety, a flight risk and that there was potential for a violent offense. Defense attorney Colin Charbonneau did not immediately return messages seeking comment. Farinacci denied starting the Old Trails fire when police initially contacted him, but during an interview with Drapeau, he confessed to that fire as well as others last year and last month, the detective wrote. That led to the four additional arson charges. He told the detective that he always carries marijuana or cigarettes so he would have a legitimate reason to have a lighter and matches. “He knows arson is an easy crime to get away from if you have time, and he had time,” Drapeau said. Farinacci researched the weather to predict a day that would be hot and windy and have low humidity for starting the Old Trails fire, Drapeau said. He also looked up the work of a well-known serial arsonist and purchased items to make a “time delay device” for igniting a wildfire, using notebook paper, matches, a cigarette and a rubber band, the detective said. Farinacci picked Saturday, Aug. 1, to start the fire because he knew there would be strong winds — reaching 50 mph (80 kph), the detective said. Farinacci said he knew it was going to get bad but claimed he didn’t intend for it to grow as much as it did, Drapeau said. Spokane County Sheriff John Nowels said Thursday that it’s going to be weeks before people can safely return to their homes in areas burned in the Spokane fires. The other two major blazes, the Autumn Lane and Fairview fires, were also started by people, though not necessarily deliberately, investigators have said. Paul Child, 64, has been credited with leading police to Farinacci. He was driving with his grandson along some railroad tracks when he saw a man standing there and looking toward nearby trees. About 10 minutes later, the man was still there. “He was bent over in the brush, acting nervous,” Child told The Associated Press on Tuesday. “You get the feeling this guy’s up to something.” Drapeau said Farinacci also admitted responsibility for 25 fires near his apartment building in summer 2025. Most were near the Spokane River or the Centennial Trail. Farinacci admitted to starting the Aubrey White fire that ignited on July 6, 2025, near the Centennial Trail and threatened homes and structures, the court filing said. It led to evacuations and road closures. An investigation determined it was caused by arson, but police didn’t have any suspects at the time. Farinacci also faces arson charges for the Meenach fire that started on July 8, 2025, the Fort George fire on Aug. 11, 2025, and the Indian Bluff fire on July 24, 2026. Farinacci served about a decade in prison after killing his father in Mesa, Arizona, in 2010. He also shot himself. He was charged with murder but pleaded guilty in 2012 to manslaughter and aggravated assault. Farinacci’s lawyer repeatedly raised concerns about his mental health during the case. Drapeau said Farinacci indicated that he moved to the Copper River Apartments in the Spokane area in October 2022. The detective said Farinacci’s son was born in 2025, and he started having difficulty dealing with “life issues” and began smoking marijuana. __ Associated Press reporter Hallie Golden contributed to this story from Seattle.

Spokane wildfire arson suspect waited for dry, windy day to start blaze, police say A man arrested on suspicion of starting a large wildfire in Spokane, Washington told investigators he waited for a hot, dry, and windy day to light the blaze, according to newly released court documents. Aaron Farinacci, 37, also allegedly claimed responsibility for 25 other fires set in the area over the last year. He appeared in court for the second time on Thursday, with a county judge raising his bond to $2m (£1.6m). No plea was entered and a mental competency evaluation was ordered. The Spokane fire is the largest of three burning around the north-western US state's second-most-populous city, forcing more than 60,000 people to evacuate and destroying more than 700 buildings. Nearly a quarter of the Spokane population was forced to evacuate the wildfires, which swept through the outskirts of the city over the weekend. No deaths or injuries have been confirmed. Authorities are trying to make contact with 14 people they have been unable to reach by mobile phone but are not yet considered missing. In an affidavit released on Wednesday, investigators testified that Farinacci admitted in a police interview to having planned the fire, known as the Old Trails Fire, two weeks in advance. "He researched his weather app to predict a day that would have 'high winds, low humidity, sort of high heat,'" the affidavit said. Detectives also believe the suspect researched a well-known arsonist in order to create a "time-delay device" for igniting the fire. Farinacci had been struggling since the birth of his son in May 2025, according to the affidavit, and became fascinated with fires and arsonists. He allegedly started setting fires in July 2025 - setting 25 by the following month. "He feels that fire is powerful, beautiful, and that things that go through fire experience a kind of rebirth," the affidavit states, adding that Farinacci said he knew the blaze "was gonna get bad" but didn't intend for it to get as large as it did. In court on Thursday, the suspect appeared to be emotional, keeping his head down and rubbing his eyes as the judge set his bond and remanded him back into police custody. Farinacci was allegedly seen kneeling near grass at the site of the latest blaze and was later found to have matches and a lighter, the Spokane County Sheriff said when he was arrested on Monday. Many people were shocked, especially after it was revealed the suspect was previously linked to two other fire investigations last year. Some told the BBC they do not have the emotional energy to be angry at the suspect, and are more focused on healing from their own psychological trauma. Others said they found "closure" in knowing the fire was intentional and not something that, after a lengthy investigation, could ultimately be attributed to a freak accident or a natural ignition. "I hope that if it's proven that he did do this, I hope the punishment will fit the crime," says Matt Kincanon, who lost his home in the Old Trails Fire. "Because what he allegedly did turned over the lives of so many people."

Police said a man charged with starting a , Washington, confessed to the crime, describing how he planned it for weeks and created a device to ignite a blaze that .Aaron Farinacci researched the weather to predict a day that would have "high winds, low humidity, sort of high heat" for the Old Trails Fire, Spokane County Detective Michael Drapeau said in a court filing Wednesday. Farinacci also looked up the work of a well-known serial arsonist and purchased items to make a "time delay device" for igniting a wildfire, using notebook paper, matches, a cigarette and a rubber band, the detective said. Drapeau said Farinacci told him that "fire is powerful, beautiful, and that things that go through fire experience a kind of rebirth." Farinacci picked Aug. 1 to start the fire because he knew there would be strong winds — reaching 50 mph, the detective said. In the court filing, Drapeau said that Farinacci told investigators he had several possible locations in mind when he left his home on the morning of Aug. 1 to start the fire, but had not determined exactly where it would be. He eventually chose a spot and "decided to light the fire at this location because he knew 'it was gonna get bad,'" Drapeau wrote. "By 'bad' he meant it would be a large fire, but claimed he did not intend for it to get as large as it did." Farinacci is charged with starting the Old Trails Fire, Farinacci made his first court appearance on Thursday on multiple counts of arson. No plea was entered and his bail was increased to $2 million. His attorney, Colin Charbonneau, did not immediately return The Associated Press' messages seeking comment. Farinacci , CBS News previously reported.Paul Child, 64, has been credited with leading police to Farinacci. He was driving with his grandson along some railroad tracks when he saw a man standing there and looking toward nearby trees. About 10 minutes later, the man was still there. "He was bent over in the brush, acting nervous," Child told The AP on Tuesday. "You get the feeling this guy's up to something." "No longer than 10 minutes after I got home, my daughter says, 'There's a fire,'" Child recalled. "My first words were, 'That SOB started a fire!' It was the exact spot where he was standing." The fires all broke out Aug. 1 amid conditions of extreme drought, high heat and powerful winds. "It's a nightmare situation," Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson said earlier this week. "This is likely the worst natural disaster in Spokane history."

The alleged arsonist in the first of three devastating wildfires in Washington state that have been burning over the past several days admitted to igniting the blaze and more than two dozen others since last year, court documents show. Four of the fires that Aaron Farinacci, 37, confessed to starting have been corroborated by detectives, prosecutors said. He is now charged with a total of five counts of first-degree arson, including one count in connection with the Old Trails Fire, which ignited Saturday. The stunning development comes as fire crews continue working to contain destructive fires in the Spokane area and are preparing for another bout of strong winds and intense heat through the weekend. The criminal charges “may be further amended as the full extent of the defendant’s criminal acts becomes known,” prosecutors said. Farinacci, a Spokane resident, told investigators he planned to commit the crime for weeks and researched what day would be ideal — a high-wind, low humidity forecast that materialized over the weekend — for igniting the fire, according to new documents filed by Spokane County prosecutors. Farinacci’s confession that he started four different fires means the case qualifies as serial arson, defined by the US Department of Justice as an offense by those who set three or more fires with a long period of time between them. They include the Aubrey White fire on July 6, 2025, which burned over 1,200 acres; another one less than 5 miles away just two days later; the Equestrian Fire on August 11, 2025; and the Indian Bluff Fire on July 24 of this year, the document said. “He feels fire is powerful, beautiful, and that things that go through fire experience a kind of rebirth,” one detective who interviewed Farinacci wrote in the affidavit. Farinacci was initially charged with one count of first-degree arson stemming from the Old Trails Fire that, together with two other fires, have in recent days destroyed over 10,000 acres, wiped out hundreds of homes and led to tens of thousands of evacuations. Prosecutors subsequently added four additional first-degree arson charges. He appeared in court Thursday, during which the judge ordered him to be held on $2 million bond. Farinacci’s defense attorney said he would be filing an order for competency evaluation. A key witness who drove past a man identified as Farinacci twice shortly before the Old Trails Fire started led law enforcement to identify him as a suspect after seeing smoke billowing from the same spot crossed paths with the man earlier. “My first response was … ‘That S.O.B. started a fire,’” said Paul Child, who lives less than half a mile from where investigators say the fire started. He chose a windy day for the arson attack During his first interview with detectives after being arrested, Farinacci initially denied for roughly the first hour and a half being involved in any fire, court documents said. But then he described “in detail his planning and execution” of starting the Old Trails Fire, prosecutors say. What was revealed in that interview became the basis for the four new charges. One detective described him as intelligent, detail oriented and “knowledgeable about fire, winds, and fire warning protocol.” He also had “extensive knowledge of other arson suspects and their methodology” and had researched serial arsonist John Leonard Orr and purchased items to make a “time delay device” for starting a wildfire, according to the affidavit. Farinacci told detectives he was dealing with personal struggles after his son was born last year and said he always had marijuana or cigarettes on him “so he would be able to have a legitimate reason to have a lighter and or matches and to assist with an arson alibi,” one detective said. “He knows arson is an easy crime to get away from if you have time, and he had time,” the detective wrote. Farinacci began planning what became the first fire on Saturday around two weeks before it started and researched on a weather app what day would have “high winds, low humidity, sort of high heat,” the affidavit said. He ultimately decided to start a fire on August 1, admitting he “knew for a fact it was going to be windy,” the document said. If confronted by police, Farinacci’s plan was to pull a knife from his backpack and “try to get the police to shoot him” but later decided to “feign innocence,” the detective wrote. Police approached him at 3 past fire sites The detective’s account of Farinacci’s confession included details about his plans for previous fires and how law enforcement approached him on three separate occasions at sites of fires he later admitted to starting, the affidavit said. During one of those interactions, after a wildfire started on July 8, a Spokane police officer located Farinacci sitting on a rock by the road and Farinacci admitted to having lighters on him to smoke cannabis, the document said. But during his interview Monday, Farinacci told investigators he was sitting on the rock “due to falling and hurting his tailbone while setting fires” and had cannabis on him as an excuse for having lighters in case law enforcement spoke to him, prosecutors said. Farinacci showed investigators on a map the sites of four fires, the affidavit says. The county prosecuting attorney said in the filing Wednesday that state law does not allow “the magnitude of an offense” to be reflected in the charges. “To say it another way, whether one house was burned or 1,000 houses were burned, our state law counts that as a single act or ‘single unit’ of prosecution,” said prosecuting attorney Preston McCollam. Witness account led to his arrest Less than an hour before he saw flames roaring down the road from his home on Saturday afternoon, Child was driving with his grandson in the rural area outside Spokane where he lives to pick up his grandson’s friend, he told CNN. On their route, they spotted a bald man wearing a backpack and green T-shirt pacing on the side of the road. At first, Child didn’t give it much thought. But minutes later, on the way back to his home, after picking up his grandson’s friend, they saw the man in the same spot. This time, Child said the man was bending over and looked like he was doing something in the bushes, facing the tree line on the other side of the railroad tracks, Child said. “Once he saw us, he just stood up and kind of acted kind of nervous … shuffling back and forth,” Child said. Shortly after Child returned home, he said, his daughter told him there was a fire and when Child ran outside, he saw a plume of smoke billowing from the same place where he had seen the man. Child’s daughter called 911 and he flagged down an officer to tell him about the man he saw, which ultimately helped law enforcement identify Farinacci as a suspect. Within an hour, the officer told Child that deputies had detained a person who matched the description he gave, the grandfather said. Investigator recognized him from 2025 fire site By the end of the day on Saturday, Farinacci was released after he denied starting the fire and being in its vicinity, according to court documents. But at the time, deputies didn’t know the full facts of how the fire occurred, including its origin point, which wasn’t revealed until a state fire investigator looked into the case, the affidavit said. When the investigator determined the fire’s origin to be the exact spot where Child reported seeing Farinacci kneeling in the grass, detectives used that information and the body-worn camera footage of encounters with Farinacci to build their case. Farinacci was arrested Monday and was charged with first-degree arson. It’s not his first time facing felony prosecution. Farinacci previously pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to 12 years in prison after fatally shooting his father. The shooting occurred during an argument about washing dishes in 2010, the Associated Press reported, citing records. He was also contacted by law enforcement about two other fires, though he wasn’t charged in either case, according to the probable cause affidavit for his arrest. One investigator’s realization that Farinacci’s distinctive T-shirt was noted in a fire investigation at Riverside State Park last August led to the first charge against him related to the Old Trails Fire, prosecutors say. During his initial detention Saturday, Farinacci was wearing a fanny pack and a green T-shirt with the words “who needs luck I have charm” written on it, the same t-shirt he was seen in last August when law enforcement found Farinacci “on a park bench seemingly out of breath from possibly running,” the affidavit states. This story has been updated with additional information. CNN’s Matt Friedman, Holly Yan, Graham Hurley and Mary Gilbert contributed to this report.

This live blog will no longer be updated. Please visit our new live blog for Aug. 6 for the latest information. Three major wildfires in the Spokane region continue to force evacuations as firefighters work around the clock to establish containment. The fires have burned 11,000 acres, destroyed around 700 buildings and forced nearly 67,000 people to flee their homes. An arson suspect has been arrested on suspicion of starting the Old Trails Fire, and investigators say the Autumn Lane Fire and the Fairview Fire were human-caused, though not necessarily intentionally. Old Trails Fire: Burning 3,576 acres in the Indian Trail area northeast of Airway Heights. It's now 13% contained. Autumn Lane Fire: Burning 5,878 acres in the Nine Mile Falls area of northwestern Spokane. It's now 13% contained. Fairview Fire: Burning about 992 acres in the Mead and Peone Prairie area of northeast Spokane. It's now 5% contained. Additionally, a fourth fire, the Charles Fire, popped up in west Spokane County on Wednesday. That fire is about two acres and prompted evacuations.

A man charged with starting one of the wildfires in Spokane, Washington, that have destroyed hundreds of buildings planned the crime for weeks and researched when the weather would be best for igniting it, police said. Aaron Farinacci expressed that "fire is powerful, beautiful, and that things that go through fire experience a kind of rebirth," Spokane County Detective Michael Drapeau said in a court filing Wednesday, recalling his interview with him. Farinacci, 37, is charged with starting the Old Trails Fire, one of three fires in the Spokane area that have burned more than 850 homes and forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people. He's due in court Thursday for arraignment on a first-degree arson charge. RELATED STORY | Arson suspect arrested as Washington state battles devastating wildfires Defense attorney Colin Charbonneau did not immediately return messages seeking comment. Farinacci researched the weather to predict a day that would have "high winds, low humidity, sort of high heat" for starting the fire, Drapeau said. He also looked up the work of a well-known serial arsonist and purchased items to make a "time delay device" for igniting a wildfire, using notebook paper, matches, a cigarette and a rubber band, the detective said. Farinacci picked Saturday, Aug. 1, to start the fire because he knew there would be strong winds — reaching 50 mph (80 kph), the detective said. He said he knew it "'was gonna get bad,'" the detective said, but Farinacci claimed he didn't intend it to grow as much as it did. Paul Child, 64, has been credited with leading police to Farinacci. He was driving with his grandson along some railroad tracks when he saw a man standing there and looking toward nearby trees. About 10 minutes later, the man was still there. "He was bent over in the brush, acting nervous," Child told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "You get the feeling this guy's up to something." Drapeau said Farinacci also admitted responsibility for 25 fires near his apartment building in summer 2025. Most were near the Spokane River or the Centennial Trail. Farinacci said he didn't think the Aubrey White Fire in July 2025 would cause damage but "one house got 'slightly damaged' from the side," the detective said. That fire was added to the charges, as well as the Meenach Fire, the court filing states. RELATED STORY | Tips on how to stay safe from hazardous wildfire smoke Farinacci served about a decade in prison after killing his father in Mesa, Arizona, in 2010. He also shot himself at that time but survived. He was charged with murder but pleaded guilty in 2012 to manslaughter and aggravated assault. Farinacci's lawyer repeatedly raised concerns about his mental health during the case. Drapeau said Farinacci indicated that he moved to the Copper River Apartments in the Spokane area in October 2022. A son was born in 2025 and "he began having trouble dealing with life issues," the detective said. "He began smoking marijuana at about this time."

The man accused of setting one of the most destructive fires in Washington state is now facing five counts of first-degree arson. Aaron F. Farinacci, 37, appeared in court for his arraignment Thursday after he was charged in connection with the Old Trails Fire. That fire, along with two others that sparked on Saturday, Aug. 1, have burned more than 800 buildings in Spokane County. In court documents filed the night before the arraignment, investigators said Farinacci said he started 25 fires since July of 2025. They corroborated four of those fires, and added those charges to his case. At the scheduled hearing Thursday, Farinacci’s court-appointed public defender requested his client undergo a competency evaluation to see if he is fit to stand trial. OPB has reached out to Farinacci’s appointed lawyer, who did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Spokane County Superior Court Judge Jeremy Schmidt signed the order for a competency evaluation shortly after the arraignment, a court clerk told KUOW reporter Paige Browning in the courtroom. This temporarily pauses court proceedings to complete the evaluation. Witness reports Fairnacci was arrested after being identified by a man driving with his grandson just before noon Saturday. According to a police report, the man told officers that he saw a person, who was later identified as Fairnacci, standing near a set of train tracks and looking into a tree line. The man said that when he drove by again, the person was still in the area and “acting nervous” as his vehicle approached. After returning home, the man’s daughter noticed smoke from the same area where Fairnacci had been spotted. Police detained Fairnacci on Saturday about a mile away from where the fire started. Fairnacci told police he was coming from the Euclid area after walking a 4-mile loop, a trail he said he walks nearly every day. He was wearing a backpack, a fanny pack, shorts and a green shirt that read, “Who needs luck I have charm,” in white letters. Inside Fairnacci’s fanny pack was a pack of cigarettes, a butane lighter and GoFire-branded rain-ready, heavy-duty waterproof matches. The box contained 14 of the 25 matches advertised on the packaging, according to police. Authorities said Fairnacci told a deputy with the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office that he uses the matches to light his cigarettes when he doesn’t have a lighter. However, he was released at the scene due to police not having the “total facts of the incident including the point of origin or source of the fire,” a police report says. Fairnacci was arrested at his apartment in Spokane two days after the Old Trails Fire started. His bail was set at $1 million during his first court appearance. In his most recent appearance, bail was raised to $2 million. Prior behavior Police have questioned Farinacci about fires in the past. Investigators spoke with Farinacci twice in 2025 in connection with other fires. Once for an unidentified fire in July, and another time for the Equestrian Fire in Riverside State Park in August. Photos from the Equestrian Fire showed a man in the same green and short sleeve shirt as Farinacci near the flames. Farinacci is now facing charges for that fire, The Old Trails Fire, and the Aubrey White Fire, TJ Meenach Fire, Equestrian Fire, and the Indian Bluff Fire. In 2010, Farinacci, 21 at the time, shot and killed his father in Mesa, Arizona, following an argument over washing the dishes, according to police. He also turned the gun on himself, but survived his injuries. Court records show he was initially charged with homicide, ultimately pleading guilty to manslaughter and aggravated assault. He was released from prison in 2020. This story was reported in partnership with the Northwest News Network, a collaboration between public media organizations in Oregon and Washington, including Spokane Public Radio. It is part of OPB’s broader effort to ensure that everyone in our region has access to quality journalism that informs, entertains and enriches their lives. To learn more, visit our journalism partnerships page.

Associated PressAssociated Press Leave your feedback SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — A Spokane County detective who interviewed the man accused of starting one of the city's wildfires said the man confessed, described his planning process and explained how he created a device to ignite the blaze. WATCH:Man charged with arson as Washington wildfires devastate Spokane area Detective Michael Drapeau said in a court filing Wednesday that Aaron Farinacci told him that he planned the Old Trails fire for about two weeks. He researched the weather to predict a day that would have "high winds, low humidity, sort of high heat." Farinacci also researched a well-known serial arsonist and purchased items to make a "time delay device" for igniting a wildfire using notebook paper, matches, a cigarette and a rubber band, the detective said. The fire Farinacci was charged with sparking is one of three burning in the Spokane area that have burned more than 850 homes and forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people. Drapeau said Farinacci told him that "fire is powerful, beautiful, and that things that go through fire experience a kind of rebirth." Farinacci is due in court Thursday on an arson charge. He picked Saturday, Aug. 1, to start the fire because he knew it would be windy — reaching 50 mph (80 kph), the detective said. He picked a spot to start the fires "because he knew it 'was gonna get bad,'" the detective said. Farinacci told the detective he knew it would be a large fire but didn't intend for it to grow as much as it did. He assembled a time-delay device that he ignited with a cigarette in grass, Drapeau said. Farinacci told the detective that he ran from the tracks and headed for the street. Support trusted journalism and civil dialogue. Left:Chimneys from homes lost during the Old Trails fire line near West Houston Avenue in Spokane, Washington, Aug. 4, 2026. Photo by Matt Mills McKnight/Reuters ByAmy Taxin, Associated Press ByLindsey Wasson, Associated Press ByDerek Gatopoulos, Sylvie Corbet, Associated Press ByJohn Hanna, Lindsey Wasson, Associated Press ByJohn Hanna, Associated Press Associated PressAssociated Press SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — A Spokane County detective who interviewed the man accused of starting one of the city's wildfires said the man confessed, described his planning process and explained how he created a device to ignite the blaze. WATCH:Man charged with arson as Washington wildfires devastate Spokane area Detective Michael Drapeau said in a court filing Wednesday that Aaron Farinacci told him that he planned the Old Trails fire for about two weeks. He researched the weather to predict a day that would have "high winds, low humidity, sort of high heat." Farinacci also researched a well-known serial arsonist and purchased items to make a "time delay device" for igniting a wildfire using notebook paper, matches, a cigarette and a rubber band, the detective said. The fire Farinacci was charged with sparking is one of three burning in the Spokane area that have burned more than 850 homes and forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people. Drapeau said Farinacci told him that "fire is powerful, beautiful, and that things that go through fire experience a kind of rebirth." Farinacci is due in court Thursday on an arson charge. He picked Saturday, Aug. 1, to start the fire because he knew it would be windy — reaching 50 mph (80 kph), the detective said. He picked a spot to start the fires "because he knew it 'was gonna get bad,'" the detective said. Farinacci told the detective he knew it would be a large fire but didn't intend for it to grow as much as it did. He assembled a time-delay device that he ignited with a cigarette in grass, Drapeau said. Farinacci told the detective that he ran from the tracks and headed for the street. Support trusted journalism and civil dialogue. ByAmy Taxin, Associated Press ByLindsey Wasson, Associated Press ByDerek Gatopoulos, Sylvie Corbet, Associated Press ByJohn Hanna, Lindsey Wasson, Associated Press ByJohn Hanna, Associated Press

The man accused of starting Spokane’s devastating Old Trails fire confessed to detectives he planned the blaze two weeks in advance, according to court records. Law enforcement arrested 37-year-old Aaron Farinacci Monday evening on suspicion of first-degree arson, after witnesses reported he was acting suspicious at the scene where the fire started, near Old Trails and Euclid roads northeast of Airway Heights. “He feels fire is powerful, beautiful, and that things that go through fire experience a kind of rebirth,” Spokane County sheriff’s Detective Mike Drapeau wrote in court records. Drapeau wrote Farinacci made the statements to investigators during an interview following his arrest. He ultimately confessed to starting 25 fires near his apartment complex near the Spokane River, north of the West Central Neighborhood, though detectives corroborated four. One of them was the Aubrey White fire that burned 41 acres on July 6, 2025. “He knows arson is an easy crime to get away from if you have time,” Drapeau wrote. “And he had time.” While in court for the second time this week on Thursday afternoon, Spokane County Superior Court Judge Jeremy Schmidt increased the suspected arsonist’s bond to $2 million, added four additional counts of first-degree arson in light of the new information and signed off on a competency evaluation. Farinacci had a buzz cut and wore light green jail clothing during his virtual appearance from the Spokane County Jail. He sat next to Colin Charbonneau, Farinacci’s attorney and director of the Spokane County Public Defender’s Office, as a partially full courtroom gallery and jury box full of media and Spokane County Sheriff’s Office detectives watched on . Spokane County Prosecutor Preston McCollam, who sat next to Charbonneau, asked Schmidt to double Farinacci’s bond to $2 million “given the gravity of these charges.” Just like Farinacci’s first court appearance Tuesday, Charbonneau reserved argument on probable cause, bond and release conditions. Charbonneau did ask for a competency evaluation for his client and he’s scheduled for a stay hearing on Sept. 4, when Superior Court Judge Andrew Van Winkle put the case on hold. Farinacci, who has a previous manslaughter conviction in Arizona for killing his father, spent eight years in prison and was released in 2020. He finished the last two years of his probation in Washington, according to the state’s correctional facility. The fire began around noon Saturday, northeast of Airway Heights. High winds carried the flames through Riverside State Park , where the fire jumped the river into the city, destroying hundreds of structures. Farinacci told detectives after his arrest he had planned the fire two weeks before. He had researched the weather to find a day that would have high winds and high heat and settled on Saturday, a day with a “particularly dangerous situation” warning from the National Weather Service for severe fire weather. Farinacci called the conditions that day “ideal,” court records say. Farinacci also researched a well-known arsonist, John Leanord Orr, and purchased items like matches, cigarettes and rubber bands to create a device to start the fire, according to court records. Two days before the start of the Old Trails fire, Farinacci decided he would set it on Saturday, court records say. He settled on the location near the BNSF Railway train track because he “knew it was gonna get bad.” Paul Child, 64, told The Spokesman-Review he spotted a man, later identified as Farinacci, in a green shirt and backpack standing on the other side of the train track. He said the man turned around and looked at them as they drove by. Child said he continued driving, picked up his grandson’s friend and started driving home on Euclid. He found Farinacci in the same area, about half a mile from his home, where he was spotted about 10 minutes earlier. But this time, Farinacci was bent over the grassy, brushy area. He later told police he set the fire using a timed ignition device made from cigarettes and rubber bands, according to court records. Child was able to flag down a police officer, who broadcast the suspect’s description over the radio. Farinaccci was contacted twice walking down Euclid Road, down Trails Road and then Government Way. The first time, sheriff’s Sgt. Kevin Mosher noticed a man matching the description of the suspicious person walking more than a mile from the area the man was first seen. He was wearing a green T-shirt, shorts, a fanny pack and backpack. The man said he was coming from the area of Euclid and the railroad tracks. At the time, Farinacci said he thought to himself he would “feign innocence” if confronted by police, according to court records. He also had a plan to pull a knife from his backpack if confronted and force police to shoot him, the records say. Deputies found a pack of cigarettes, a butane lighter and a box of Gofire brand waterproof matches in Farinacci’s fanny pack. The box of 25 matches had 14 inside. Deputies released Farinacci to focus on evacuations at that time, until a fire investigator also noticed Farinacci walking down the road and pulled him over. The fire investigator was Marc Titus, an employee with the Washington state Department of Natural Resources. A Spokesman-Review reporter on West Trails Road and the Centennial Trail observed a man in a green shirt and backpack walking eastbound between 1 and 2 p.m. Saturday. A man drove down West Trails Road and stopped next to a Spokane police officer who was parked at the Centennial Trail entrance to block traffic. He told the officer, “We saw that guy an hour ago.” A fire official, now identified as Titus, stopped to intercept the conversation and asked the officer if he was going to stop the man in the backpack. The police officer indicated he could not leave his post at the time. The official drove down the road, flashed the light on top of the truck and made contact with the man before heading back to the fire. Law enforcement sources confirmed to The Spokesman-Review on Monday evening Farinacci matches the paper’s description of a suspect wearing a green shirt with a backpack. When Titus stopped Farinacci at that point, he identified himself and told Titus he’d just been interviewed by police, according to the affidavit. Titus had seen Farinacci walking away from the fire earlier, the records say. Nearly 100% of fires in the city are human-caused, as are a majority of fires in the county, Spokane Fire Department spokesperson Justin de Ruyter previously told The Spokesman-Review. Farinacci is scheduled for an arraignment Friday. S-R reporter Garrett Cabeza contributed to this story.

Un hombre fue detenido como presunto responsable de haber provocado de manera intencional uno de los tres incendios forestales que afectan la zona de Spokane este del estado de Washington, mientras equiós de emergencia continúan trabajando para contener las llamas y evitar que el fuego destruya más viviendas. Detienen a sospechoso de provocar uno de los tres incendios en Wahington Aaron F. Farinacci, de 37 años, fue detenido el lunes en relación con el incendio Old Trails. El detenido cuenta con una fianza fijada de 1 millón de dólares, es decir diecisiete millones doscientos treinta y siete mil seiscientos pesos mexicanos, así lo dio a conocer el sheriff del condado de Spokane, John Nowels. Farinacci fue condenado por homicidio involuntario en 2012 tras un delito cometido en 2010 en Arizona. Fue sentenciado a 12 años de prisión y fue liberado en diciembre de 2020. “Por lo que hemos podido determinar hasta ahora, es residente de Spokane”, afirmó Nowels. A man has been arrested on a charge of arson in the first degree in connection with the Old Trails Fire, one of three wildfires burning in Spokane County, Sheriff John Nowels said at a news conference late Monday. — CNN (@CNN) August 4, 2026 Aaron F. Farinacci, 37, was arrested Monday afternoon and is… pic.twitter.com/YNkHGWL1gd De acuerdo con sheriff, el detenido fue visto la primera vez por un testigo el sábado, orillado cerca del lugar donde comenzó el incendio Old Trails. Más tarde vio humo salir de esa zona, dando aviso a los agentes de la oficina del sheriff. Durante la detención, se le encontraron cerillos impermeables y un encendedor de butano. El investigador de incendios determiní que la causa del incendio era consistente con una llama abierta sobre la vegetación con un encededor o un fósforo. Incendios forestales en Washington Un hombre fue detenido como sospechoso de provocar intencionalmente uno de los tres incendios forestales en el estado de Washington, así lo dieron a conocer las autoridades. Bomberos trabajan en la zona para evitar que se propagen las llamas y destruyan más viviendas. Estos incendios han terminado aproximadamente 4.047 hectáreas, destruyendo estructuras y vieviendas en la zona de Spokane. "La situación es crítica", mencionó el gobernador de Washington, Bob Ferguson. Los incendios han provocado evacuaciones masivas. Unas 65 mil personas habían sido evacuadas del condado de Spokane hasta el lunes, además equipos de emergencia intentaban localizar a 14 personas. Hasta el momento no se han confirmado muertos ni heridos. Otra de las consecuencias que han provocado estos incendios es el aire insalubre; han contribuido a una dalidad del aire "muy insalubre".

The evacuees from the Spokane fire could take “weeks” to return to their homes as firefighting teams continue their battle against the blaze. The flames have destroyed between 700 and 1,100 buildings and more than 65,000 people had to flee their homes. The governor of Washington noted that this is “the worst natural disaster” in the area. “Weeks could pass.” That is the disheartening timeline Spokane mayor Lisa Brown gave to evacuated neighbors about the possibility of returning to their homes—or what remains of them—after the devastating fires have already devoured more than 4,000 hectares and destroyed between 700 and 1,100 buildings, including vital infrastructure. Although a slight respite in the scorching temperatures in recent days allowed firefighting teams to advance in their fight against the flames, the fires remain active to this day. In fact, authorities expressed concern that the thermometers will rise again, making the work more difficult. Brown also explained that authorities were combing the city block by block to assess the damage and noted that there is still no date for people to be able to return home, something she does not foresee happening soon: “Weeks could pass, depending on where your house and your property are located.” 700 to 1,100 buildings, entire neighborhoods destroyed by the flames What they are finding is a desolate landscape. Aerial footage indicates that 700 to 1,100 buildings have fallen prey to the fire, with entire neighborhoods destroyed by the advance of the flames. Neighbors are torn between desolation, worry, and anger at the person detained as a suspect of having started the worst of the three fires that have razed their homes. “It’s hard to find words to describe this feeling of anger and disgust toward someone who mocks the fate of thousands of people,” Kimber Renz, 35, a victim and director of a daycare, told AFP. “It’s infuriating, it’s horrible. I hope they get what they deserve,” she added. The woman lost the home where she lived with her three children and her partner, who had just moved in after their wedding two months ago. Under the smoldering ruins, she has only recovered some garden furniture and a few metal cake molds. The accused of causing the most powerful fire is a 37-year-old man. The accused is a 37-year-old man identified as Aaron Farinacci, and he was posted a bond of one million dollars on Tuesday. Farinacci was initially arrested near the site where the fire began on Saturday but was released, before being re-arrested after authorities linked him to the case, said Spokane County Sheriff John Nowels. Nowels also highlighted the actions of authorities and the public’s response, something he considers key so that, thus far, there have been no reported deaths or injuries despite the scale of the fires: “I believe the estimate is up to 65,000 people we had to evacuate from these areas, and if you think about what that implies, the fact that we were able to get people out of those areas in a matter of hours in an active fire zone is quite remarkable.” Trump unlocks federal aid after state of emergency declaration The governor of Washington state, Bob Ferguson, called the fires “the worst natural disaster” in Spokane’s history. Ferguson, who spoke with President Donald Trump about the situation, declared a state of emergency on August 1, citing drought conditions and high temperatures that worsen the wildfires. Ferguson reported that the Trump Administration had approved his state of emergency declaration, which allows federal aid to be unlocked to facilitate rescues, housing for evacuated people, and medical care.