Hunt for a Serial Arsonist

John Orr was considered one of the best investigators, highly respected in his field among his peers. He began his days in the Air Force fire suppression unit. Later on he would go apply for a job as a firefighter but would constantly violate rules being the rebel in the unit. After his days as a firefighter he moved on to become an investigator and that is where he truly gained fame. No matter how late he would appear at fire scenes he seemed to be able to think like the arsonist and uncover clues no one else could uncover. Thus with an impressive record like this it was tough to place him as a suspect. Nonetheless he was tracked and was found taking part in suspicious actions. It would later be uncovered that prints found on the paper recovered at one fire scene would link Mr. Orr to the crime.

Arsonist often commits these crimes to destroy or vandalize property, achieve revenge or personal gain, or convey a radical thought. Some even do it just fro the thrill of being caught or to get attention from others. For John Orr he fell under lack of attention and the thrill. Apart from home movies made by him recovered at his house, he was also in the process of writing a book on an arsonist ( himself.) This would provide valuable insight into his inner motives in why he committed these crimes. In his book he would talk about “fictional” accounts of fires and the feeling and exhilaration of lighting something aflame. These accounts would prove to be eerily close to those that an arsonist could have applied to the fires in Los Angeles and Fresno.