“Swift trial, death penalty, televised” - Internet reacts to video of Kenneth fire suspect’s arrest

Amidst all catastrophic wildfires in Southern California, the Kenneth fire broke out west of LA’s West Hills neighborhood. The incident blazed nearly 1,000 acres and is being investigated as arson by the authorities. A suspect has been arrested by the police, who they believe started the Kenneth fire.

Talking to Brian Etin (@BrianEntin) of News Nation, LAPD Senior Lead Officer, Charles Dinsel, said the suspect was apprehended by the residents in the Woodland Hills area after the Kenneth fire broke out. On being asked whether the Kenneth fire was set intentionally, Officer Dinsel said:

“At this time that’s what we believe, yes.”

Seemingly, an unconfirmed video of the LAPD arresting the accused has also surfaced online, which received many responses from the netizens. The user @EndWokeness posted the said clip and wrote:

“This is the suspect accused of starting the 900+ acre (still ongoing) Kenneth Fire. LA residents caught him. – Swift trial, death penalty, televised.”

Many other users gave their opinions on the matter. Here are some of those responses.

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Netizens react to the Kenneth fire suspect’s alleged arrest video

As soon as the video of the alleged arrest went viral, the X users didn’t hold back, as many demanded heavy penalties:

“If this is, in fact, the one responsible, then he has, by his own hand, revoked his privilege to live free among society. Off to jail.,” a user suggested.

"He definitely needs to receive the maximum sentence the law allows," another user wrote.

"They need to make an example out of him," someone replied.

"I'd get banned if I said what I think should be done to him," someone wrote.

"Different angle. Looks like that might be a propane cylinder on the hood of the car," another user pointed out.

The authorities haven’t confirmed many details about the suspect, but there are reports of him being a homeless person. According to KTLA, a witness, Renata Grinshpun, narrated the incident:

“We were sitting in the backyard and suddenly, we hear a car come to a screeching halt and the guy is running out saying, ‘Stop! Drop what you’re holding! Neighbors, he’s trying to start a fire! Call 911!’”

Grinshpun said that the residents collectively caught the suspect, who had something that looked like a large “propane tank or a flamethrower.” After the citizens contained the accused, they reached out to the police. The authorities received a call around 4:30 p.m. about a person trying to start a fire in the 21700 block of Ybarra Road in Woodland Hills, LA.

For the uninitiated, the Kenneth fire started on January 9, 2024, in the afternoon. It rapidly grew due to the wind gusts, but fortunately, the firefighters could contain it to an extent. Governor of California, Gavin Newsom, announced that the wildfire burnt 1,000 acres and was 35% contained, with the “forward rate of spread,” being stopped.