The devastating wildfires tearing through Los Angeles have revealed a shocking new twist: the man caught attempting to start a fire near the Kenneth Fire is an illegal immigrant.
Mexican national Juan Manuel Sierra-Leyva was apprehended Thursday after Calabasas residents saw him walking with a yellow blowtorch in hand. Eyewitnesses described Sierra-Leyva as determined, with one neighbor recalling he repeated, “I can’t stop. I’m doing this.”
In an extraordinary act of bravery, locals banded together to detain him. Renata Grinshpun recounted the tense scene: “A few gentlemen surrounded him, got him on his knees, and used zip ties and rope to make a citizen’s arrest.”
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Police arrived shortly after and took Sierra-Leyva into custody, but controversy erupted when officials announced they lacked the evidence to charge him with arson. Instead, he was arrested on a probation violation. “After additional investigative steps, there wasn’t enough probable cause for an arson charge,” said LAPD Chief Dominic Choi.
Sierra-Leyva’s immigration status has added to the outrage. ICE has issued a detainer request, but California’s sanctuary state laws mean it’s unlikely to be honored. Meanwhile, wildfires continue to ravage over 40,000 acres, destroying affluent neighborhoods and claiming 24 lives.
BREAKING: Illegal charged with r*ping and kidnapping a 13-year-old girl in a FL park.. Martinez-Varela entered in 2023. pic.twitter.com/Sx6SH788jq
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) January 13, 2025
Critics argue this case highlights the dangers of lax border and immigration policies. “California’s sanctuary laws protect criminals while residents lose their homes and lives,” one commentator said.
With the investigation ongoing and Sierra-Leyva set to appear in court Monday, the fallout from this case—and the wildfires—shows no signs of abating.
