El Dorado County Sheriff's OfficeIf you’re going to commit a crime, maybe it’s best you don’t film it.
Wayne Allen Huntsman decided to do just that, and it cost him $60m (about £42.5m) in fines and 20 years in prison.
He filmed himself starting a major fire in California back in 2014 – which became known as King Fire. It burned 12 homes, 68 other structures and almost 100,000 acres of land. It took 300 firefighters about a month to control, Fox News reports.
And this guy decided to film himself starting it.
GettyApparently, an unsuspecting retired firefighter found Huntsman and offered him a lift out of the area, and Huntsman – as you do – showed the stranger the video of him starting the fire. Probably not the best idea. The firefighter filmed the arsonist’s footage on his own phone as evidence and turned it into police a few days later.
Huntsman originally pleaded not guilty to starting the fire, but in court on Friday, he admitted to three counts of felony arson. He’s been sentenced to 20 years in prison and ordered to pay $60m in restitution.
Definitely not the smartest move, Wayne.
Watch the video of him starting the King Fire here:
