Arizona firefighter arrested for arson after allegedly starting multiple fires
Jul 21, 2023, 2:00 PM
PHOENIX — A northern Arizona firefighter has been arrested for arson after allegedly confessing to setting multiple fires in recent weeks, authorities said Friday.
Karson Nutter, 18, is suspected of starting eight blazes in the Ash Fork area since mid-June, the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office said. Ash Fork, which has a volunteer fire department, is about 50 miles west of Flagstaff, near the Interstate 40-State Route 89 interchange.
Nutter admitted to being directly involved in seven of the fires during questioning Thursday night, YCSO said.
“During his confession, Nutter stated that his motives in setting these fires ranged from boredom, retaliation against a former employer, chasing a thrill, and setting fires to some abandoned homes for being ‘ugly,'” YCSO said in a press release.
Yavapai and Coconino deputies have had their eye on Nutter since he provided deceptive and misleading information during early investigative interviews.
Authorities believe Nutter is responsible for four fires Yavapai County and four in Coconino County. The locations were a Mobil station and county-owned ceremony in Ash Fork (twice each), two abandoned homes in Kaibab Estates West and two wildfires along Forest Service Road 124.
He was booked into the Yavapai County Detention Center on three counts of arson, aggravated criminal damage and five counts of false reporting to law enforcement.
He is expected to face additional charges related to the fires in Coconino County.
