This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Prosecutors this week may file arson charges against a suspect who they say ignited a south central Utah wildfire that burned 2,000 acres of national forest.
"It was arson," Wayne County Sheriff Kurt Taylor said Monday. "It was set intentionally. It's still under some investigation."
The Lost Lake Fire ignited June 5 near the town of Teasdale on the Dixie National Forest. It was contained about two weeks later and cost $3.2 million to fight.
Taylor declined to disclose the suspect's name or motive. Taylor said the suspect remains free until charges are filed.
The sheriff said the suspect, who lives in the area, ignited the Lost Lake Fire in multiple spots 75 to 150 yards apart.
The suspect might have used a cigarette lighter but no accelerants, "just dry material on the mountain," Taylor said.
Detectives from the sheriff's office and the U.S. Forest Service investigated the case.
Mark McIff, the Wayne County attorney, said he expects to receive information about the case this week. McIff said he didn't know whether charges would be filed in state or federal court.
"That's a conversation I'll be having," McIff said.
There were no deaths or reported injuries in the fire and the Lost Lake Fire did not burn any structures, though the blaze got as close as 150 yards to homes and forced residents in at least six homes to evacuate.
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