Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, has been indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly starting the fire that became the deadly Pacific Palisades blaze in Los Angeles earlier this year.

The three-count indictment includes destruction of property by fire, arson affecting property used in interstate commerce, and timber set afire, carrying a potential sentence of up to 45 years.

Rinderknecht, a former Los Angeles resident now living in Florida, was arrested on October 7, months after the January 1 fire that eventually killed 12 people and destroyed neighborhoods.

Authorities allege he ignited combustible material with an open flame, and digital evidence reportedly includes an image he generated using ChatGPT depicting a burning forest, ABC News has reported.

Rinderknecht is scheduled to appear for arraignment in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles in the coming weeks.