U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have confirmed that an illegal immigrant helped spark the recent conflagration in Northern California.
Tom Homan, ICE’s Acting Director, acknowledged agents arrested Jesus Fabian Gonzalez in connection with setting the fire that destroyed large swaths of the state’s heralded Wine Country.
Homan also revealed that Gonzalez was an illegal immigrant from Mexico, who U.S. authorities had deported twice. (RELATED: Sanctuary State Arsonist Is Illegal Immigrant)
Sonoma County is a “sanctuary” county, meaning that it does not fully cooperate with federal immigration officials. Homan harshly criticized Sonoma County’s policies for helping an illegal immigrant arsonist stay in the country:
Law enforcement booked Gonzalez for “various felony and misdemeanor charges” related to the fires, but a lack of information means it’s not entirely clear what his role was.
The fires still raging in Northern California have caused more than $3 billion in damages, destroyed 5,700 buildings, and killed 42 people—making them the deadliest to hit the United States in nearly 100 years.