It was initially reported as an arrest made on the suspicion of arson, with Sean Dinse of the LAPD’s Topanga Division telling news station KTLA on Thursday night that the authorities believed someone had purposefully set the Kenneth Fire.

Authorities said there was not enough probable cause to arrest the man on suspicion of arson, but he has been charged with a felony probation violation

The Kenneth fire burns in the Upper Las Virgenes Open Space Preserve on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, in West Hills, L.A. Credit - Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times— A man was arrested on suspicion of arson on Thursday afternoon in the Woodland Hills near the Kenneth Fire,

Forward progress of the Kenneth fire in the West Hills area of Los Angeles and Ventura County was stopped overnight at 1,000 acres as fire crews achieved 35% containment, authorities said Friday morning, Jan. 10. All evacuation orders and warnings within Los Angeles were lifted by Thursday evening, officials said.

Residents of Los Angeles’ Woodland Hills neighborhood helped police stop and detain a man with a blowtorch on Thursday, January 9, suspecting him of arson as the Kenneth Fire burned nearby.This footage captured by Chris Sumner shows community members confronting a man with a blowtorch in Woodland Hills,