Two charged with causing Arizona's Wallow Fire Terence Corrigan - The Independent White Mountain Independent | 4 comments
PHOENIX ? Two cousins are facing multiple criminal charges in connection with the Wallow Fire that consumed over a half million acres of forest lands.
The Wallow Fire started on May 29 and burned 538,000 acres, destroyed 32 homes, four commercial structures and 36 outbuildings. The cost to fight the fire was over $79 million, according to federal investigators.
Caleb Joshua Malboeuf, 26, of Benson and his cousin David Wayne Malboeuf, 24, of Tucson are each facing five federal charges in the case. The complaint was filed Aug. 24. The pair will make their initial appearance in federal court in Flagstaff on Sept. 19.
The cousins are accused of leaving a campfire unattended that resulted in the start of the fire.
The charges include leaving a fire without completely extinguishing it, failing to control a fire, building a fire without removing all flammable materials from around the fire and causing a wildfire on federal lands.
The Forest Service Special Agent that worked on the case started his investigation on the day the fire started. On that Sunday, investigators found a 2001 Toyota Corolla parked at the Bear Wallow Trailhead, two miles from the where the Wallow Fire started. The vehicle belonged to David Malboeuf.
David and Caleb were found the next morning, five miles from the Wallow Fire, on Forest Road 25 near Wildcat Crossing.
A Forest Service law enforcement officer intially interviewed the Malboeufs May 30.
Caleb and David Malboeuf told similar stories about their camping trip in the Bear Wallow Wilderness Area.
The pair started their hiking and camping trip on May 28. They hiked into the forest and set up a campsite near the confluence of the north and south forks of Bear Wallow Creek. They built a campfire in a campfire ring that night and again in the morning. They admitted that they did not clear the area around the fire of flammable materials.
The pair told investigators that they built their morning cook-fire about 8 a.m. and at 11 a.m., thinking the fire was out, went for hike.
They told investigators they hiked a mile or two down the canyon and while returning they smelled and saw smoke coming from the area near their campsite.
When they got to within a few hundred yards of the campsite, ?they saw the fire was burning on both sides of the drainage and up the canyon from their camp,? wrote the investigator in the complaint. ?They tried to return to the camp to cut their dogs loose, which they had left tied up in camp, but could not get close because of the fire smoke.?
The Malboeufs ran from the area towards the Black River where they spent the night. The next morning they hiked up river to Wildcat Crossing where they met with a Sheriff?s deputy.
One of the dogs died in the fire, the other survived.
In an interview on June 7, the Malboeufs listed the property they left at the campsite including packs and sleeping bags, food, a camera and two firearms: a 30-30 Marlin rifle and a .22 caliber pistol.
Caleb told investigators that they ?took no action to extinguish their campfires on Saturday and Sunday because they had attended the fires long enough that they felt confident that the fires went out on their own.?
Both cousins told investigators that David had tossed a ?Gummie Bear? wrapper on the fire Sunday before they went hiking and since it didn't shrivel or melt they assumed the fire contained no heat and was out.
?Both Caleb and David Malboeuf stated ... that they are experienced campers and very familiar with the Apache National Forest, frequenting the forest for years,? wrote Special Agent Lucas Woolf in the criminal complaint.
A conviction for each of the offenses charged in the complaint carries a maximum penalty of six months in prison, a $5,000 fine or both.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the U.S. Forest Service, with assistance from the Apache County Sheriff?s Office and the Arizona Department of Public Safety. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Schneider, District of Arizona, Flagstaff.
PHOENIX ? Two cousins are facing multiple criminal charges in connection with the Wallow Fire that consumed over a half million acres of forest lands.
The Wallow Fire started on May 29 and burned 538,000 acres, destroyed 32 homes, four commercial structures and 36 outbuildings. The cost to fight the fire was over $79 million, according to federal investigators.
Caleb Joshua Malboeuf, 26, of Benson and his cousin David Wayne Malboeuf, 24, of Tucson are each facing five federal charges in the case. The complaint was filed Aug. 24. The pair will make their initial appearance in federal court in Flagstaff on Sept. 19.
The cousins are accused of leaving a campfire unattended that resulted in the start of the fire.
The charges include leaving a fire without completely extinguishing it, failing to control a fire, building a fire without removing all flammable materials from around the fire and causing a wildfire on federal lands.
The Forest Service Special Agent that worked on the case started his investigation on the day the fire started. On that Sunday, investigators found a 2001 Toyota Corolla parked at the Bear Wallow Trailhead, two miles from the where the Wallow Fire started. The vehicle belonged to David Malboeuf.
David and Caleb were found the next morning, five miles from the Wallow Fire, on Forest Road 25 near Wildcat Crossing.
A Forest Service law enforcement officer intially interviewed the Malboeufs May 30.
Caleb and David Malboeuf told similar stories about their camping trip in the Bear Wallow Wilderness Area.
The pair started their hiking and camping trip on May 28. They hiked into the forest and set up a campsite near the confluence of the north and south forks of Bear Wallow Creek. They built a campfire in a campfire ring that night and again in the morning. They admitted that they did not clear the area around the fire of flammable materials.
The pair told investigators that they built their morning cook-fire about 8 a.m. and at 11 a.m., thinking the fire was out, went for hike.
They told investigators they hiked a mile or two down the canyon and while returning they smelled and saw smoke coming from the area near their campsite.
When they got to within a few hundred yards of the campsite, ?they saw the fire was burning on both sides of the drainage and up the canyon from their camp,? wrote the investigator in the complaint. ?They tried to return to the camp to cut their dogs loose, which they had left tied up in camp, but could not get close because of the fire smoke.?
The Malboeufs ran from the area towards the Black River where they spent the night. The next morning they hiked up river to Wildcat Crossing where they met with a Sheriff?s deputy.
One of the dogs died in the fire, the other survived.
In an interview on June 7, the Malboeufs listed the property they left at the campsite including packs and sleeping bags, food, a camera and two firearms: a 30-30 Marlin rifle and a .22 caliber pistol.
Caleb told investigators that they ?took no action to extinguish their campfires on Saturday and Sunday because they had attended the fires long enough that they felt confident that the fires went out on their own.?
Both cousins told investigators that David had tossed a ?Gummie Bear? wrapper on the fire Sunday before they went hiking and since it didn't shrivel or melt they assumed the fire contained no heat and was out.
?Both Caleb and David Malboeuf stated ... that they are experienced campers and very familiar with the Apache National Forest, frequenting the forest for years,? wrote Special Agent Lucas Woolf in the criminal complaint.
A conviction for each of the offenses charged in the complaint carries a maximum penalty of six months in prison, a $5,000 fine or both.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the U.S. Forest Service, with assistance from the Apache County Sheriff?s Office and the Arizona Department of Public Safety. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Schneider, District of Arizona, Flagstaff.
