The first fire was set in a hardware store in Pasadena in 1984. Four people died including a 2 year old child. It was first said to be set by an electrical fire and then the arson investigator, John Orr, came in and insisted it was an arson job.
A series of suspicious fires followed the Pasadena fire throughout southern California through the 1980s and early 1990s. Orr continued to be the arson investigator in the fires. In 1990 some fire squads met and spoke about the fires. The meeting produced a fingerprint that matched Orr. He was bugged and considered a serious arson suspect.
Then in 1991 Orr was found at a suspicious fire and the investigation was decided to be suspended and a warrant for his arrest was issued. He was arrested and found guilty of arson. He is in prison with a lifetime sentence.