Jonathan Rinderknecht listened to disturbing French song before setting deadly Palisades fire, chilling details out
An Uber driver, Jonathan Rinderknecht, is accused of starting the Palisades Fire after listening to a rapper's track about despair and bitterness nine times.
An Uber driver who is accused of "maliciously" starting the catastrophic Palisades Fire listened to a rapper's track with themes of "despair and bitterness" nine times before the deadly incident, NY Post reported, citing court documents. The music video shows the French rapper setting items on fire.
Jonathan Rinderknecht arrested: All about the French song
According to the complaint, just before midnight on December 31, 29-year-old French-born Jonathan Rinderknecht accessed YouTube to listen to the French rap song “Un Zder, Un The” by artist Josman.
“The music video for the song shows the main character (Josman) lighting things on fire,” the court documents states.
The complaint states that the theme of the song, as translated into English, is “despair and bitterness.”
In the preceding four days, Rinderknecht had tuned in to the same music nine times, according to Google logs, the complaint said. He viewed the accompanying music video four times.
Jonathan Rinderknecht's ChatGPT requests
Additionally, the alleged arsonist made unsettling ChatGPT requests, asking for "A dystopian painting divided into distinct parts that blend together seamlessly. On the far left, there is a burning forest. Next to it, a crowd of people is running away from the fire, leading to the middle,” the complaint stated.
The most destructive fire in the history of Los Angeles started on January 7, close to a hiking trail that looked out over the affluent coastal neighborhood.
The Eaton Fire, which started that same day in the LA region, destroyed 9,400 buildings and claimed 19 more lives. It's still unknown what caused that fire. Rinderknecht is scheduled to appear in court in Orlando, Florida, on Wednesday.
Acting United States Attorney Bill Essayli stated at a news conference in Los Angeles on Wednesday that Rinderknecht was held in Florida on Tuesday and charged with causing property destruction through fire.
Authorities stated that additional charges, including murder, may follow.
