A 28-year-old Santa Rosa transient, Antonio Martines, was arrested last Saturday morning following a foot pursuit after officers suspected him of arson along Santa Rosa Creek Trail. According to the Santa Rosa Police Department, callers reported that a man acting aggressively might have started a fire west of the 1500 block of Apple Creek Lane. A witness reportedly saw Martines with a lighter near the blaze. When authorities arrived, Martines had fled the area, prompting a search.
The Santa Rosa Fire Department (SRFD) extinguished the small fire, and during its operations, it spotted Martines nearby. This prompted them to call back an officer, who encountered Martines brandishing a lighter and disobeying commands. Martines proceeded to quickly run from the scene, only to hide behind a bush, which was futile as he was rapidly located and detained after a brief chase of around three minutes. As officers were responding to the scene, they were informed of a similar fire incident that occurred the day before, and they are now investigating a possible connection between the two events.
As per the Santa Rosa Police's Facebook page, Martines was found to be on felony formal probation for assault with a deadly weapon. The charges levied against him include arson, resisting a peace officer, and violation of probation.
The fires reportedly burned an area of significant size, with the earlier incident last Friday consuming a swath of land approximately 100 feet long and nearly 10 feet wide. The fire last Saturday was smaller but still significant enough to prompt concern. The case number for the Santa Rosa Police Department on this matter is 24-11454.
