Overview
- Federal filings cite screenshots of texts referencing plans to leave the U.S., including mentions of Bali and Malaysia, to argue Jonathan Rinderknecht could flee.
- Agents say they found a .380 Smith & Wesson pistol hidden inside a stuffed animal at his sister’s Florida home and that he had a loaded magazine in his pocket at arrest.
- An ATF agent previously testified that he threatened to burn his sister’s home and kill his brother-in-law, and prosecutors say the family moved out after volatile confrontations.
- The defense seeks supervised release to his parents, asserts he has no criminal history, says his U.S. passport expired and he lacks a French passport, and disputes the government’s claims.
- Rinderknecht has pleaded not guilty to three federal arson counts tied to the Jan. 1 Lachman fire that investigators say rekindled into the deadly Palisades Fire; a trial is currently set for April 2026.