Crime rate surges in LA after raging fires

A slew of crimes has surged in Los Angeles, California, in the wake of last week's devastating fires that ravaged the city. 

Criminals are taking advantage of the darkness and emergency imposed in many neighbourhoods. American media reports suggest that more than 25 people have been arrested, including one impersonating a firefighter, for crimes in Los Angeles County.
The number of detentions from severely affected areas Eaton and Palisades are 25 and four, respectively.

A man dressed as a firefighter was also caught looting a house in the Malibu area of LA. 
Recalling the problems faced by the police, a local police officer said, “He was dressed like a fireman, and he was not. He just got caught burglarizing a home," while adding, "Those are issues that our frontline deputies and police officers are dealing with."

On the other hand, police officials also reported to have arrested a homeless man who was caught by onlookers “throwing a flame” in the fire.

The “flamethrower” was caught by residents in the area while he was torching old Christmas trees and debris on fire soon after the wildfire began.

However, the media reports say that he is an illegal immigrant from Mexico who is likely to be protected by California’s sanctuary city status. The Los Angeles Police Department also said that there was not enough evidence to support the charge of flamethrowing.

Notably, other detentions over the weekend were for violating curfew, which was set from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. in specific areas ravaged by the fires.

California Governor Gavin Newsom warned the burglars in a statement, “Those who would seek to take advantage of evacuated communities, let me be clear: looting will not be tolerated.”

US media outlets reported yesterday that private fire fighting crew members charge thousands of dollars, therefore jail inmates from around California have been deployed to put out the fire in Eaton and Palisades. These prisoners only make around 27 dollars for a 24-hour shift compared to the base salary of $3,700 to $4,600 a month for the private crews.

A total of 950 inmates are volunteering for the program. 

Their work includes staying close to crews working to put out fires while wearing distinct orange uniforms. Instead of using hoses or water, they use “hand tools to aid in fire suppression” along with supporting other emergency workers in the area. 

In return for this service, two days are docked off their sentence for each day they work with fire fighting crews.

24 people have been consumed by the huge fires that started on January 7. Moreover, 16 people are missing, and more than 100,000 people have been forced to evacuate.