A “person of interest” in the Kenneth fire who was arrested after being caught with a blowtorch near the source of the fire has been detained by immigration authorities for entering the country illegally from Mexico, officials said Tuesday.
Juan Manuel Sierra, 33, a.k.a Juan Manuel Sierra-Leyva, was arrested last Thursday by the Los Angeles Police Department for violating felony probation after “attempting to start a fire” in a West Hills neighborhood near the location of the Kenneth fire. He is a suspect in connection with the nearly 1,000-acre blaze, according to law enforcement officials and a document reviewed by The Times.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement placed an immigration detainer on Sierra on Saturday. He remains in a Los Angeles County jail. The Sheriff’s Department said it will hand over a person in custody if ICE has an arrest warrant.
Sierra has not been charged in connection with the Kenneth fire, but he was arrested by Los Angeles police officers after he was seen attempting to spark a fire, according to a law enforcement email obtained by The Times. A viral video from a security camera appeared to show Sierra carrying a blow torch. Residents reported to the LAPD that he was attempting to ignite a fire and they detained him until police arrived.
According to law enforcement sources, some residents chased Sierra after they alleged he “torched” old Christmas trees put out for disposal.
Sierra was arrested last week for a probation violation but Ventura County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Monica Smith identified him as a “person of interest” in the Kenneth fire, which began Thursday afternoon near the Los Angeles and Ventura county line and threatened homes in Calabasas and Hidden Hills.
Fanned by strong Santa Ana winds, the fire consumed more than a 1,000 acres of brush and burned south through open space toward homes in the Malibu Canyon area north of the 101 Freeway near Calabasas. But a series of water drops helped contain the blaze, fire officials said.
ICE officials said Sierra is a Mexican national who entered the U.S. unlawfully at an unknown date and location without inspection by an immigration official.
According to ICE, Sierra has had “multiple encounters with law enforcement from November 2016 to present for a variety of charges and was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon Oct. 10, 2023, in Van Nuys.” He was on felony probation at the time of his arrest.
A man with Sierra’s same birthday has been arrested at least three other times by Los Angeles police since 2023, according to L.A. County jail records.
Sierra had been under the L.A. County Probation Department’s supervision since October 2023, stemming from an assault conviction, according to Vicky Waters, the agency’s communication director. He had pending violations for failing to report to his probation officer and violating the terms of his probation, she said. Sierra last reported to the probation department in November 2024.
