What one witness saw moments before a fire started

Paul Child at his home on the outskirts of Spokane, Wash., on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026. Child noticed a man lurking in the grass and called 911 after seeing smoke. The man was accused of starting one of three wildfires in the area and charged with arson. (Loren Elliott/The New York Times)

By POOJA SALHOTRA and ANNA GRIFFIN

Paul Child and his grandson were about half a mile from their home outside Spokane, Washington, when they spotted a man standing over a stretch of tall grass and trees near a railroad. The man appeared fidgety and nervous when he saw Child’s car approaching, Child said.

Soon after reaching home, Child heard his daughter call from the backyard, saying she saw smoke nearby.

“I ran out the door,” said Child, 64, who suspected that the man he had seen had started a fire.

The family called 911 and prepared to evacuate, while Child drove down the road to warn his neighbors. Within 20 minutes, firefighters and a police officer arrived to a fire that was already out of control.

Authorities said in an affidavit that they had detained a man named Aaron F. Farinacci and asked Child to confirm whether he was the same man he had seen moments earlier. He did.

The blaze, later named the Old Trails fire, quickly became one of three fast-spreading wildfires in Spokane County that have scorched more than 10,000 acres since last weekend. The fires, which were still active as of Tuesday, have forced some 65,000 people, including the Child family, to evacuate their homes. At least 700 structures have been destroyed in the blazes, but no fatalities have been reported.

When police detained Farinacci, 37, on Saturday, the origins of the fires were unknown, according to court records. When Farinacci was questioned, he denied starting the fire, the affidavit states, and the authorities let him go. By the next day, though, investigators had found that the Old Trails fire was consistent with one started by a lighter or match, and they discovered that it had begun in the same spot where Child had reported seeing the man.

On Monday, Farinacci was arrested and charged with one count of first-degree arson, which is punishable by up to life in prison and a $50,000 fine upon conviction. He is being held on a $1 million bond.

Farinacci made his first court appearance Tuesday afternoon. A judge kept the bond and said that Farinacci could not be in possession of any lighters, matches, torches or fire-starting devices if the bond were posted. The judge scheduled an arraignment for Thursday afternoon, when Farinacci is expected to enter a plea.

Colin Charbonneau, the director of the county public defender’s office, said that he represented Farinacci during Tuesday’s hearing and that a lawyer in his office would likely be assigned to represent Farinacci starting Wednesday. He did not comment further on the case.

Farinacci was carrying waterproof matches and a butane lighter when he was arrested, said Sheriff John Nowels of Spokane County. Court documents show that Farinacci had been investigated in connection with two fires in Washington last summer, but he was not arrested in either case.

In 2012, Farinacci was convicted of a felony in Arizona in the death of his father. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter and aggravated assault after initially being charged with first-degree murder, according to court records from Maricopa County.

Records for that case show that Farinacci, who was 21 years old at the time of the killing, fatally shot his father after an argument in their home. He told investigators that he had not intended to shoot his father and that he had tried to kill himself afterward.

Court records showed a history of mental illness and treatment, but he was declared fit to stand trial. Under a plea deal, the murder charge was dropped, and Farinacci was released on probation in 2020.

Neither Farinacci’s mother nor his siblings responded to requests for comment Tuesday. Nobody answered the door at a Spokane apartment that was listed as Farinacci’s residence.

At some point after his release on probation, court records show, Farinacci moved to Washington, where he worked a full-time job and lived with his brother and later with his girlfriend.

On Sunday, Child returned to his home, which survived the fire. He wondered whether he should have stopped and confronted the man he saw.

“I do second guess myself, whether I could have done something more,” he said. “But it’s good to see there might be accountability.”

Earlier in the week, weather conditions had improved, allowing some evacuees to return. But on Tuesday, the National Weather Service said that smoke from the wildfires had extended into western Washington and was causing poor air quality. Higher temperatures and drier air forecast for later this week were expected to bring a return to extremely critical fire weather.

A pool remains near homes destroyed by the Old Trails fire in Spokane, Wash., on Monday morning, Aug. 3, 2026. A resident of Spokane County, Wash., said he noticed a man acting suspiciously and called 911 after seeing smoke; the police later arrested a suspect tied to one of the wildfires in the area. (Loren Elliott/The New York Times)