Case # 18CF0943, 18HF0845
Date: July 24, 2018
SERIAL ARSONIST CONVICTED OF TWO ATTEMPTED BURGLARIES, SETTING SIX FIRES IN MISSION VIEJO, AND STALKING WOMAN IN RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA
SANTA ANA, Calif. – A serial arsonist was convicted yesterday of two attempted burglaries, setting six fires in Mission Viejo, and stalking a woman in Rancho Santa Margarita.
| Defendant | Charges | Maximum Sentence | Court Date |
| Jack Frye, 19, Lake Forest
|
Pleaded guilty yesterday to the following counts:
Felony
Misdemeanor
|
15 years in state prison | Sentencing
Oct. 4. 2018, 8:30 a.m.
Department H7, Harbor Justice Center, Newport Beach |
Circumstances of the Case
- At the time of the crime, the defendant was a former student of Mission Viejo High School (MVHS).
- Between March 14, 2018 and March 18, 2018, Frye stalked Jane Doe, making her fear for her safety.
- On March 14, 2018, Frye slashed the tires of Jane Doe’s car.
- On March 18, 2018, the defendant attempted to enter Jane Doe’s home in Rancho Santa Margarita.
- Between March 28, 2018, and April 4, 2018, Frye lit multiple fires at MVHS and one fire at the Kaleidoscope shopping center in Mission Viejo.
- On March 30, 2018, the defendant unlawfully attempted to enter MVHS and attempted to set fire to a structure on campus.
- On April 4, 2018, the defendant further attempted to light a van on fire near MVHS. Undercover investigators from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department (OCSD) located Frye and arrested him at the scene.
- In May 2018, Fry attempted to contact Jane Doe several times via phone and letter from Orange County Jail.
- OCSD and Orange County Fire Authority investigated this case.
Prosecutor: Deputy District Attorney Jeffrey Kirk, Special Prosecutions Unit