A woman was arrested by deputies from the Crescenta Valley Station during the early morning hours of Saturday, Nov. 7 for recklessly starting a fire in the Angeles National Forest. The arrest followed a call for service received by the station when personnel from the U.S. Forest Service Fire Dept. spotted the woman walking near a small brush fire on Little Tujunga Canyon Road near mile marker 16.

As firefighters addressed the fire, deputies from Crescenta Valley arrived and detained the woman for further investigation.

The brush fire was quickly extinguished and burned approximately 0.5 acres. During their investigation, deputies determined that the woman had intentionally started the brush fire.

The woman, identified as Sheila Nartatez, a 47-year-old resident of Los Angeles, was subsequently arrested for violating Penal Code 452(c) “Recklessly setting fire to forestry land.” Nartatez was booked at the Crescenta Valley Station jail and is being held on $35,000 bail.

Starting a fire recklessly is inherently dangerous, especially during red-flag warnings for high-wind events. Strong winds can carry burning embers over long distances, igniting multiple fires and transforming a small fire into an uncontrollable wildfire. Gusting winds, steep terrain and dry conditions can accelerate fire spread, endangering lives, homes, wildlife and surrounding communities.

In anticipation of red-flag wind events, Crescenta Valley Station deploys additional units to conduct fire watch duties in our area of responsibility. 

Captain Ryan A. Vienna stated, “These units responded, investigated and arrested a woman who started this fire. I thank the fire department for its quick response, which extinguished a potentially disastrous fire that could have affected all LA County residents. We at Crescenta Valley Station remain committed to increasing our presence through field deployments during these events to save lives and property in the communities we serve.”

This investigation is ongoing and no additional information is available for release at this time.

Anyone with information about this incident is encouraged to contact Sheriff’s Arson and Explosives Detail general line at (323) 881-7500. 

Those who prefer to provide information anonymously may call “Crime Stoppers” by dialing (800) 222-TIPS (8477), use a smartphone by downloading the “P3 Tips” Mobile APP on Google play or the Apple App Store or by using the website https://www.lacrimestoppers.org/.