Paul Child twice spotted a stranger near railroad tracks outside his Washington home before noticing smoke rising about 10 minutes after the man crouched in nearby bushes. This sequence of events triggered police action that led to the identification of Farinacci, an accused wildfire arsonist.

Newly released bodycam footage shows officers evacuating Child’s family and taking him, his grandson, and the boy’s friend to a field showup after detaining a man matching their description. While waiting, an officer was recorded saying the detained man had "a whole fanny pack full of matches," though the video does not show the matches or how they were recovered. Child stated that he and the other witnesses were not informed about the alleged matches or other items before viewing the detained man.

Within about 10 minutes of returning home, Child said smoke began rising about half a mile away. He and the two witnesses gave a "100% positive ID" that the man they saw was the same individual in the area just before the fire started.

The Old Trails, Fairview, and Autumn Lane fires have burned a combined 10,002 acres and damaged or destroyed more than 920 structures, according to Spokane fire officials. Farinacci faces multiple charges, including four additional arson counts after court documents alleged he admitted to setting 25 fires in the area since 2025.

Notable Quotes

  • "He was kind of bent over and looked like he was doing something in the bushes," Child said.
  • "He got up, saw us. When he saw us, he turned to face us and kind of was pacing back and forth nervously."
  • "They didn’t say anything to us anyway about the fanny pack with matches, cigarettes [and] I guess lighter in it."
  • "We pulled off to the side of the road and they got an individual out from the back of the … Spokane County deputy car," Child recalled.
  • "We looked at him, and all three of us gave them [a] positive, 100% positive ID that’s who we’d seen in the area just before the fire started."