On Sept. 20, the Chula Vista Police Department arrested Alejandro Gonzalez, 33, after seeing him quickly walking away from a reported brush fire in the 1700 block of Fourth Ave. A string of intentionally set Otay River bottom fires over the past few months in Chula Vista have been under investigation, with most of the damage being to the vegetation in the river bottom.
When officers contacted Gonzalez, he was in possession of several lighters and, after questioning, Gonzalez admitted to intentionally setting several brush fires in the river bottom over the past five months, according to a media release.
Gonzalez is known to frequent the river bottom area and told officers he was “setting the fires due to hearing voices.” He was taken into custody and later booked into the county jail on multiple counts of arson. Out of eight fires between April 30 and Sept. 20, Gonzalez was arrested for four of them.
There is another string of five suspicious fires, four on Sept. 17 and one on Sept. 19, that are also under investigation in this case.
The CVPD is currently trying to locate witnesses or anyone with information regarding Gonzalez or any other unknown individual(s) setting fires in the Chula Vista area. Anyone who has any information regarding any of these incidents is asked to contact San Diego County Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.
Among the incidents are:
April 30: Fourth Avenue and Byer Way, undetermined brush fire, unknown suspect
June 5: 1700 Fourth Ave., undetermined brush fire, unknown suspect
June 13: Fourth Avenue and Main Street, undetermined brush fire, unknown suspect
Aug. 14: 100 Jacqua St.: undetermined brush fire, unknown suspect
Sept. 17: at 4 a.m.: Lake Crest Drive and Wueste Road
Sept. 17: at 4:05 a.m.: East J Street and River Ash Drive
Sept. 17 at 4:06 a.m.: Telegraph Canyon Road and Buena Vista Way
Sept 17 at 4:08 a.m.: 1100 Eastlake Pkwy (Eastlake High School)
Sept. 19 at 5:05 a.m.: 785 E. Palomar St. (Veterans Park)
