Arson arrest following fire at Ontario warehouse

On October 2024, a 29-year-old man named Chamel Abdulkarim from Highland was arrested and charged with multiple counts of felony arson. The suspect, an employee of NFI Industries, allegedly set fire to a warehouse in Ontario, California, operated on behalf of Kimberly-Clark. The blaze destroyed an 11,000-square-foot facility containing products such as Huggies and Kleenex. Authorities state that video footage uploaded to social media shows the suspect using a lighter to ignite toilet paper pallets while making comments regarding his pay. Forklift operator Alejandro Montero reported that he worked with the suspect for two hours prior to the incident, which occurred around 12:30 a.m. No casualties were reported, but the suspect was absent during the post-evacuation personnel count. Abdulkarim faces formal charges following the total destruction of the distribution center.