TEMECULA, CA — A Temecula man was charged Friday with more than a dozen felony counts related to nine separate fires in Riverside County. Brandon McGlover, 32, faces a potential life sentence if convicted as charged, the Riverside County District Attorney's office said.
McGlover is accused of setting nine separate fires on Wednesday, one of which exploded into the 11,500-acre Cranston Fire burning near Idyllwild. The fires were all allegedly set in the Idyllwild, Anza and Sage areas.
McGlover was arrested by a gang task force near State Street and Newport Road in Hemet about 20 minutes after the Cranston Fire broke out.
He's charged with 15 felony counts, including one count of aggravated arson, five counts of arson of an inhabited structure related to five homes destroyed in the Cranston blaze, and nine counts of arson of forest or wildland. McGlover, who's being held on $1 million bail, is slated to appear in a Murrieta courtroom Friday afternoon.
The Cranston Fire has held at 3 percent containment through Friday morning and has resulted in about 6,000 residents evacuated and almost 5,000 structures threatened, in addition to the five homes destroyed. Nearly 1,400 fire personnel are taking part in the firefight, with two firefighters sustaining unspecified injuries.
Mountain Center, Idyllwild, Hurkey Creek, San Jacinto Mountain State Park, Fern Valley, Pine Cover, Cedar Glen and Garner Valley are under mandatory evacuation orders.
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— City News Service contributed to this report / Image via CalFire
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