Current:Home > BackA Colorado man is charged with arson in a wildfire that destroyed 26 homes-LoTradeCoin
A Colorado man is charged with arson in a wildfire that destroyed 26 homes
View Date:2024-12-23 16:30:03
LOVELAND, Colo. (AP) — A Colorado man was charged with arson after an investigation into a wildfire this summer that destroyed 26 homes and caused more than $30 million in property damage, authorities said Wednesday.
Jason Alexander Hobby, 49, was arrested Tuesday, Larimer County Sheriff John Feyen said. Hobby was scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday on a first-degree arson charge in connection with the fire, which started on a guest ranch where he worked west of Loveland, about 60 miles (97 kilometers) north of Denver.
The fire escaped a fire ring on the guest ranch on July 29, Feyen said. It’s unclear whether it was intentional or accidental, he said. The wildfire, which damaged four other homes and destroyed 21 outbuildings, burned 15 square miles (39 square kilometers) of land before it was contained on Aug. 17.
Hobby was fired from his job at the guest ranch after he became a suspect in the fire, Feyen said.
Hobby also is charged with impersonating a police officer, menacing and false imprisonment for allegedly stopping travelers on the guest ranch’s property while driving an SUV designed to look like a law enforcement vehicle. Hobby reportedly represented himself as law enforcement, falsely told individuals they were trespassing, and pointed a firearm at them, investigators said. Those actions preceded the fire, Feyen said.
Hobby had a pickup truck equipped to look like a wildland firefighter truck and used it to get past checkpoints during the fire, the sheriff said.
Hobby’s bail was initially set at $250,000. His next court appearance is set for Sept. 24.
veryGood! (67426)
Related
- Whoopi Goldberg Shares Very Relatable Reason She's Remained on The View
- Andy Cohen Defends BFFs Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos After Negative Live Review
- 12 Clean, Cruelty-Free & Sustainable Beauty Brands to Add to Your Routine
- Impact investing, part 1: Money, meet morals
- The USDA is testing raw milk for the avian flu. Is raw milk safe?
- Why experts say you shouldn't bag your leaves this fall
- 10 Amazon Products That Will Solve Life's Everyday Problems
- The Way Chris Evans Was Previously Dumped Is Much Worse Than Ghosting
- LSU leads college football Week 11 Misery Index after College Football Playoff hopes go bust
- Here's how far behind the world is on reining in climate change
Ranking
- GreenBox Systems will spend $144 million to build an automated warehouse in Georgia
- Life Is Hard For Migrants On Both Sides Of The Border Between Africa And Europe
- How Rising Seas Turned A Would-be Farmer Into A Climate Migrant
- Love Is Blind's Paul Reveals the Cast Member He Dated After Micah Breakup
- Arbitrator upholds 5-year bans of Bad Bunny baseball agency leaders, cuts agent penalty to 3 years
- At least 50 are dead and dozens feared missing as storm hits the Philippines
- Frank Ocean Drops Out of Coachella Due to Leg Injuries
- Big food companies commit to 'regenerative agriculture' but skepticism remains
Recommendation
-
Blake Shelton Announces New Singing Competition Show After Leaving The Voice
-
Pamper Yourself With an $18 Deal on $53 Worth of Clinique Products
-
Travis Barker’s Daughter Alabama Shares Why Kourtney Kardashian Is the Best Stepmom
-
Andrew Lloyd Webber Dedicates Final Broadway Performance of Phantom of the Opera to Late Son Nick
-
How to protect your Social Security number from the Dark Web
-
Kelly Clarkson Shares Daughter River Was Getting Bullied at School Over Her Dyslexia
-
An economic argument for heat safety regulation
-
Did the world make progress on climate change? Here's what was decided at global talks