Couple suspected of setting Salt Fire and several others on Mescalero reservation, feds say

Jul. 21—Federal authorities suspect a man and his girlfriend intentionally set the Salt Fire — which torched 7,000 acres around Ruidoso — and more than a dozen smaller forest fires in the surrounding area.

The man described himself to both authorities and on social media as a wildland firefighter and told the FBI he was attempting to "put out" one of the fires agents believe he started.

Details of the FBI investigation were unveiled in a recently unsealed search warrant affidavit filed to seize the girlfriend's shoes: a pair of Van's sneakers that agents say left imprints at some of the fires' points of origin, including the Salt Fire.

Witnesses also told agents they saw a Jeep matching the description of the girlfriend's vehicle driving away from the areas soon after the fires were sparked.

Agents said the pair were pulled over less than a mile away from the Salt Fire within an hour of it igniting.

The Journal is not identifying the man or his girlfriend because they have not been charged. The Journal could not confirm if the man is a wildland firefighter.

No officials from the Mescalero Apache Reservation were available to comment Saturday. On May 23, the tribe posted about the ongoing fires and asked people to call, "If you see something suspicious or peculiar."

"(Bureau of Indian Affairs) Fire Management is aware and monitoring the situation," according to the site.

Igniting within hours of each other on June 17, the South Fork and Salt fires burned nearly 25,000 acres on opposite sides of Ruidoso.

The South Fork Fire, which authorities say was caused by lightning, encroached into the village and destroyed or damaged more than 1,400 structures, leaving at least two people dead.

Agents say the Salt Fire, and three smaller blazes, were intentionally set within hours of the South Fork Fire being reported.

"This resulted in suppression resources and assets, including aircraft, to be diverted from the South Fork Fire to assist in suppression efforts of the June 17 Salt Fire," according to the search warrant affidavit filed in U.S. District Court in Las Cruces.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs has said the first 24 hours of the South Fork Fire were the most destructive as high winds spread the flames across 15,000 acres.

The destruction continued long after crews got a handle on the twin fires due to relentless downpours that have hit Ruidoso and the Mescalero reservation, bringing flash floods that have led residents to evacuate parts of the village and tribal lands.

The FBI is still offering a $10,000 reward for information "leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible" for starting the Salt Fire.

In the affidavit, agents say 16 "suspicious wildland fires" were set on the Mescalero Apache Reservation between May 3 and June 18, starting with blazes at Pena and Whitetail Summit. The fires stopped on May 22 and continued on June 14 with the Chico Canyon, Trails, Carrizozo and Penn Scott fires all being lit before the Salt Fire.

All 16 fires occurred in a 25-square-mile area.

Agents said they began investigating the fires in early May but the probe "intensified" after the Salt Fire — driven by high winds and dry air — raged across the reservation and the forests around Ruidoso.

"The Salt Fire was the most destructive of these human-caused fires," according to the affidavit. "... Also diverting resources from the ongoing suppression efforts of the South Fork Fire."

Agents said they were able to link the man and his girlfriend to six of the fires, including the Salt Fire, "through evidence gathering, witness interviews, and officer observations."

After the Pena Fire sparked on May 3, two witnesses told agents they saw a dark-colored Jeep "driving fast and away" from where the smoke rose, according to the affidavit. The wildland firefighter was the one who initially reported the blaze, telling authorities he and his girlfriend then went to the area and tried to "put it out."

"(He) advised officers that he is a wildland firefighter, and while at the fire he attempted to tamp the fire with a branch and put on his fire boots while on scene. Prior to being asked, (he) stated that he did not start the fire," the affidavit states.

Agents said on May 7, an officer responding to the Whitetail Summit Fire saw a dark-colored Jeep speeding "away from the direction of the fire" and, when he left the blaze, saw the same Jeep headed toward the site of the fire. A set of Vans sneaker prints were found in the dirt near where the flames began.

On May 20, an officer responding to the Salt Well Fire interviewed some nearby residents who said they saw a dark-colored Jeep leaving the area before authorities arrived, according to the affidavit. On June 16 and 17, two small fires were set less than a half-mile apart and both were extinguished by firefighters.

Agents said they found the same shoe pattern atop the tire tracks of fire crew vehicles that responded to the June 16 fire. which "suggests the individual walked through the scene after the June 16 fire had been extinguished." At the scene of another fire set on June 17, prior to the Salt Fire, agents found unique tire tracks matching the girlfriend's Jeep.

The next day, around 2 p.m., the Salt Fire was ignited. It was just two hours after the South Fork Fire was reported.

At 2:45 p.m. a Bureau of Indian Affairs agent stopped a dark green Jeep Cherokee with the wildland firefighter and his girlfriend inside, according to the affidavit. The pair were stopped on a road leading away from the location of the Salt Fire and "less than a mile away from the point of origin."

Agents said the wildland firefighters response to the Salt Fire "differed" from how he handled the May 3 blaze, "where he called first responders and attempted to personally fight the fire."

"Several 911 calls about this fire had already been received by Mescalero Law Enforcement Dispatch. (He) never reported this fire or attempt to fight the fire even though he stated it was visible from his house (during a later interview)," according to the affidavit.

Agents said photos were taken of the Jeep's tire tread and girlfriend's shoes and the latter were made into a foam composite, "providing an even clearer match to the impression located at the two fires." A unique "double dimple" on the edge of the Jeep tire tracks appeared to match those found at the scenes.

During an interview on June 25, the girlfriend told agents "it was unusual" for her boyfriend to keep his fire boots in the Jeep, according to the affidavit. When questioned about it, the boyfriend told agents he keeps them in the Jeep "this time of year in case he gets a call to respond to a fire."

A day earlier the wildland firefighter had taken to Facebook apparently to address rumors that he was an arsonist.

"I haven't been charged nor will I ever I'm a Wildland Fire Fighter... please just keep my Name out ur Mouth because I'm not No Peace (sic) Of (expletive) Person I would never put My Land Or People in jeopardy," he wrote.

A month earlier, on May 27, he had posted a photo of his work truck with the caption "Back in the Office."