Amidst the destruction, a 37-year-old man was arrested on Monday on suspicion of starting the destructive Old Trails wildfire, charging him with first-degree arson.

Aaron F. Farinacci is being held on a $1 million bond and is set to appear in court this Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. PDT.

The fire, which began on Saturday, has burned 13,596 acres according to the Washington State Department of Natural Resources.

Benjamin Cossel, a spokesperson for the incident command center, said no injuries or fatalities have been reported so far, around 700 buildings have been destroyed, and thousands of people were evacuated from their homes.

However, Cossel said there is a high possibility that fatalities will be reported, as flames continue to spread out of wooded areas into neighborhoods and commercial areas. The subsequent search and recovery efforts will expand into currently inaccessible areas, which can unfortunately reveal casualties from the wildfires.

According to the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office, a witness reported to law enforcement that a man was seen near the site of the Old Trails Fire before the fire began. The witness added that the man had been staring into the trees before crouching beside a road near a patch of grass.

Investigators located Farinacci, where they detained and questioned him. Initially, law enforcement released him; however, further investigation into the case connected Farinacci to the wildfires, citing that the origin of the blaze matched his kneeling in the grass location.

Court documents revealed that Farinacci has a criminal history, which includes a manslaughter conviction, and an alleged connection to two fires started in July and August 2025.

According to Spokane County Prosecuting Attorney Preston McCollam and court documents, Farinacci pleaded guilty to manslaughter after killing his father in a domestic incident in 2010, for which he was sentenced to 12 years in prison.