The case now turns on a citizen tip, fire-scene analysis and court records showing earlier police contacts that did not lead to charges. Authorities say the Old Trails Fire is the largest of three Spokane-area blazes that have destroyed at least 700 buildings.
A man was charged with setting Spokane’s largest wildfire in Washington, and court records say he was questioned about two other blazes last year. The article explains the wildfire investigation and arson allegation against Aaron F. Farinacci, 37, of Spokane, whose case is now tied to the Old Trails Fire.
The fire matters beyond one criminal charge: it is the biggest of three Spokane-area blazes that authorities say have destroyed at least 700 buildings and forced tens of thousands of people from their homes. Farinacci denies setting the fire, according to court documents cited by The Associated Press.
The charge now before court
Farinacci was arrested Monday and booked on suspicion of first-degree arson in connection with the Old Trails Fire, according to court records described by the AP. His bond was set at $1 million.
The Old Trails Fire has been described as the largest of three major fires burning in and around Spokane, Washington state’s second-largest city. Authorities have not reported any deaths.
The case is still at an early stage. Farinacci appeared in court Tuesday by video from jail and was represented by Colin Charbonneau, director of the Spokane County public defender’s office. A judge set his arraignment for Thursday.
That timing matters: an arrest and a high bond do not settle whether prosecutors can prove an arson case. The central allegation is serious, but Farinacci is presumed innocent unless convicted.
A citizen tip changed the case
The investigation accelerated after a rural resident northwest of Spokane reported seeing a man near railroad tracks shortly before a fire was noticed, according to a probable cause statement summarized by the AP.
Paul Child, 64, told the AP he was driving with his grandson Saturday when he saw a man standing and looking toward nearby trees. On the way back, Child said, the man was still there and appeared to be in the brush, acting nervous.
Child’s daughter called 911 after a fire was seen. Child returned to the area and gave police a description: a bald white man wearing a green shirt and carrying a backpack, according to the probable cause statement.
A sheriff’s deputy later detained a man matching that description more than a mile away. Child identified the person in custody as Farinacci, the document says.
Why deputies first let him go
Deputies found Farinacci with a backpack and fanny pack containing cigarettes, waterproof matches and a butane lighter, according to the probable cause statement. He denied starting the fire and denied having been where it began.
At that point, the responding deputies did not yet know about Farinacci’s earlier fire-related law enforcement contacts, and investigators had not determined the cause of the Old Trails Fire, the document says. Deputies released him so he could continue working on evacuation efforts.
The next day, according to the court filing, a wildland fire investigator ruled out other possible causes, including sparks from electric wires or passing trains. Farinacci was arrested Monday.
Spokane County Sheriff John Nowels credited alert residents for the arrest, saying citizens who were aware of their surroundings and willing to speak up helped lead to Farinacci’s relatively quick apprehension.
Earlier fires raise new scrutiny
The detail now drawing attention is not that Farinacci was convicted in earlier fire cases. He was not. The issue is that law enforcement had questioned him in two fire-related investigations last year, according to the probable cause statement.
One case involved reports of several fires on July 8, 2025, near Farinacci’s apartment, police records cited in the court document say. The area near the Spokane River included several “bus-sized” fires and prompted a large emergency response.
The second prior contact came the following month during an investigation into a wildfire at Riverside State Park. The Washington State Patrol encountered Farinacci on a park bench while pursuing a suspect, according to the court record. The document says he appeared out of breath, and officers photographed him.
In neither of those two prior cases was Farinacci arrested or charged, according to the AP. Authorities also have not said what caused the other two fires now burning around Spokane.
The scale of Spokane’s losses
The Old Trails Fire is being weighed against a broader emergency across the Spokane area. Officials say three blazes have destroyed at least 700 buildings and pushed tens of thousands of residents from their homes.
That scale helps explain why the arson allegation has drawn intense attention. In wildfire cases, investigators often have to sort through damaged terrain, competing ignition possibilities and witness accounts while communities are still evacuating or returning to damaged neighborhoods.
The allegation also lands in a region where weather, dry vegetation, infrastructure and human activity can all become part of a fire investigation. The court filing says investigators ruled out some possible causes in the Old Trails Fire, but public information remains limited.
For residents who lost homes or were forced to flee, an arrest may offer a sense of movement in the case. It does not answer every question about the fires, including how the other blazes began or whether any additional charges will be filed.
Old history, current limits
Court and police records also connect Farinacci to a separate, older criminal case in Arizona. The AP reported that he served about a decade in prison after killing his father in Mesa, Arizona, in 2010.
He was originally charged with murder but pleaded guilty in 2012 to manslaughter and aggravated assault, records show. A judge previously found him mentally fit to assist in his defense, though his defense attorney continued to raise questions about his mental health, according to the AP account.
That history may shape public reaction, but it does not prove the current arson allegation. The Spokane case will turn on the evidence tied to the Old Trails Fire: witness identification, fire-origin analysis, physical items found with Farinacci, his statements to deputies and whatever prosecutors present in court.
The next key step is the arraignment set for Thursday. Until more filings or testimony are made public, the unanswered questions remain substantial: what evidence prosecutors believe links Farinacci to ignition, whether the defense challenges the witness identification or fire-cause finding, and whether investigators connect him to any other fire beyond the charge now before the court.
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