Fireworks tossed from a vehicle started NoCal fire

OROVILLE - A 26-year-old man has been arrested and charged with arson in a Northern California fire which torched 3,789 acres in Oroville in early July.

Spencer Grant Anderson, an Oroville resident, was arrested in Chico. He was charged Monday (August 26th) with arson of an inhabited structure, arson of forest land and arson causing multiple structures to burn during the Thompson Fire, according to CalFire.

The charges came after an extensive 50-day investigation by a team of investigators brought in from around the state. At any given time, four to six investigators had Anderson under 24/7 surveillance while others conducted a forensic investigation at the intersection of Cherokee and Thompson Flat roads, the site where the fire started, CalFire said.

Anderson admitted that he had purchased fireworks the day the fire started and tested one by throwing it out the window, CalFire said.