By Alex Lane - A suspect has been arrested for a string of arson fires in the El Dorado area. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or CALFIRE, arrested Kenneth Powell, age 25, on seven counts of arson. Powell was arrested in El Dorado Hills where he was a long time resident. CAL FIRE Peace Officers and El Dorado DA Investigators executed the arrest warrant on October 27 at 5:30 PM; he is currently being detained in El Dorado County Jail. The seven fires broke out during a two-hour period on October 18th. All were grassland fires except one that was set in a dumpster at Raley's, said Bill Dillard, a criminal investigator with the DA's office. The grassland fires were in large, dry fields and many were near multi-million dollar homes bordering Amador County. According to Dillard, he fires were kept to less than an acre each because of the quick response from fire agencies including Cal Fire and the El Dorado Hills Fire Department. “I commend the efforts of the joint investigation team working diligently on the case,” said Unit Chief Bill Holmes. The joint investigation was conducted by CAL FIRE, El Dorado Hills Fire Department and the El Dorado County District Attorney's Office. “There is a lot of tedious, time consuming work that goes into these investigations,” said Holmes. “It’s worth the effort, though, when we can stop arson fires from occurring. Californian’s lives and property are already at significant risk from wildfire without these intentional fires adding to the threat.”
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