Fires death prompts LA murder case

LOS ANGELES - The investigation into the huge fire that devastated part of the exclusive Pacific resort of Malibu, California, has turned into a homicide investigation following the death of a British film director, writes Phil Reeves.

Authorities searching for the cause of the fire, which sent Hollywood film stars fleeing from their homes, are becoming increasingly convinced that it was set off by at least one arsonist, and possibly two.

The death of Duncan Gibbins, a director-screenwriter, who suffered 95 per cent burns after attempting to rescue a Siamese cat, which survived the blaze, means that any culprits arrested face possible murder charges. Mr Gibbins, a former BBC television reporter and documentary-maker, moved to Los Angeles in the early 1980s.

At least 200 homes were destroyed in the fires, which swept 15 miles across the Santa Monica mountains and devastated part of Malibu, including the mansion home of Sean Penn. The fire then headed south-east, moving through several mountain canyons until it was several miles from the edge of Los Angeles and the J Paul Getty Museum. However, after some 3,000 firefighters fought the flames for 48 hours, fire officials last night said it was '70 per cent' controlled.

Investigators have concluded that arsonists, using flares and petrol, may have started at least seven of the 17 big fires that have swept across southern California. Detectives have been asking eyewitnesses to submit to hypnosis to help identify culprits. They have been scouring vehicle records to try to identify a pickup truck, seen being driven away by two men from the starting point of the Malibu fire.

The governor of California, Pete Wilson, offered a dollars 125,000 ( pounds 84,000) reward for information leading to the arrest of whoever started the Malibu fire, and has called for life imprisonment for arsonists. The current penalty in California is a maximum of eight years.