Uber Driver Arrested in Connection With Devastating Palisades Fire After ChatGPT Query Linked Him to Crime

Authorities have arrested a Florida man on a felony arson criminal complaint in connection with the deadly Palisades fire at Los Angeles in January, and a ChatGPT query helped lead authorities to his arrest.The wildfire caused more than $250 billion in damage and is blamed for 12 deaths.The acting United States attorney for the Central District of California, Bill Essayli, says Jonahtan Rinderknecht, 29, was an Uber driver in Southern California at the time of the fire.Mr. Rinderknecht was driving a shift on New Year’s Eve. Two passengers told investigators that Mr. Rinderknecht appeared agitated and angry during their rides that night.After dropping off a passenger in the Palisades, Mr. Rinderknecht allegedly pulled his car over and attempted to call a former friend. He then allegedly got out of the car and walked up a hill.Mr. Essayli says Mr. Rinderknect then recorded some video with his phone at the top of the hill, and listened to a French rap song that has a music video that includes objects being lit on fire. Mr. Rinderknecht — who told investigators he grew up in France — had reportedly watched the video multiple times in the days leading up to the fire.Mr. Rinderknecht then started the Lachman Fire just after midnight with a lighter, according to a criminal complaint. Prosecutors say Mr. Rinderknecht called 911 to report the fire minutes later.A criminal complaint alleges that while Mr. Rinderknect was on the 911 call, he typed a question into the ChatGPT app on his iPhone: “Are you at fault if a fire is lift [sic] because of your cigarettes.” ChatGPT’s response was, “Yes,” followed by an explanation.Investigators say Mr. Rinderknecht started driving away from the scene but turned around and followed fire trucks dispatched to suppress the fire. He allegedly returned to the spot at the top of the hill.Investigators say Mr. Rinderknecht took more videos of the flames as firefighters battled to control them.The fire was suppressed but continued to burn and smolder underground for about a week. Winds reignited it and spread it into what became known as the Palisades fire.Hurricane-force winds drove the flames across the coastal Pacific Palisades neighborhood. Flames moved so quickly that many barely had time to escape.Police sought shelter inside their patrol cars, and residents at a senior living center were pushed in wheelchairs and hospital beds down a street to safety. More than 6,800 structures burned in the most destructive fire in Los Angeles history. More than a thousand other structures were damaged.Mandy Moore, Cary Elwes, and Paris Hilton were among the stars who lost homes. Billy Crystal and his wife Janice lost their home of 45 years in the Palisades fire.By January 24, police had identified and interviewed Mr. Rinderknecht. Mr. Essayli says Mr. Rinderknecht lied during questioning and claimed he had been at the bottom of the hill instead of the top, which was about 30 feet from where the fire started.Mr. Essayli says digital evidence uncovered by investigators included a ChatGPT prompt from six months before the incident asking to create a “burning forest and a crowd fleeing from it.”Mr. Rinderknecht was arrested at Melbourne, Florida, where he currently resides. He was due in an Orlando court on Wednesday. He faces 5 to 20 years in federal prison if convicted.“This arrest will provide, we hope, a measure of justice to all of those who were impacted,” Mr. Essayli said.

Uber Driver Arrested in Connection With Devastating Palisades Fire After ChatGPT Query Linked Him to Crime

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