Aaron Farinacci chose August 1 for a reason. He had researched the weather forecast and knew that day would bring winds reaching 50 mph. According to CBS News, Spokane County Detective Michael Drapeau said in a court filing Wednesday that Farinacci had planned the fire for weeks before setting it.
Farinacci looked up the work of a well-known serial arsonist and purchased materials to build what Drapeau called a "time delay device." The device was made from notebook paper, matches, a cigarette, and a rubber band. He also researched conditions he wanted for the fire, specifically a day with "high winds, low humidity, sort of high heat," the detective said.
On the morning of August 1, Farinacci left his home with several possible locations in mind but had not settled on an exact spot. He eventually chose a location and, according to the court filing, "decided to light the fire at this location because he knew 'it was gonna get bad.'" Drapeau wrote that by "bad," Farinacci meant a large fire, but that he claimed he did not intend for it to grow as large as it did.
Farinacci told investigators that "fire is powerful, beautiful, and that things that go through fire experience a kind of rebirth," according to Drapeau's filing.
The fire Farinacci is accused of starting, the Old Trails Fire, is one of three fires that broke out in the Spokane area that day. Fire officials told CBS News that at least 913 structures have been damaged or destroyed across all three fires. Of those, 694 were damaged or destroyed in the Old Trails Fire alone. Tens of thousands of people were forced to evacuate.
Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson described the situation earlier this week. "It's a nightmare situation," Ferguson said. "This is likely the worst natural disaster in Spokane history."
A civilian named Paul Child, 64, has been credited with leading police to Farinacci. Child was driving with his grandson near some railroad tracks when he spotted a man standing and looking toward nearby trees. After about ten minutes, the man was still there.
"He was bent over in the brush, acting nervous," Child told the Associated Press. "You get the feeling this guy's up to something."
Child went home. Shortly after, his daughter told him a fire had started. "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."
Farinacci made his first court appearance Thursday on multiple counts of arson. No plea was entered. His bail was increased to $2 million. His attorney, Colin Charbonneau, did not return messages from the Associated Press seeking comment. Farinacci has a prior manslaughter conviction, CBS News previously reported.
The next steps in the case will depend on how the court handles the charges now before it.
