Arson Suspect's Bail Raised to $2 Million

Charges are expected to be filed Tuesday afternoon against a South Pasadena man accused of setting dozens of fires in town, as well as in Pasadena and at least one in Los Angeles. 

And because South Pasadena Police perceive Javier Adolfo Viera, 35, to be an imminent threat to the public, Viera is being held at Pasadena Jail in lieu of $2 million bail, rather than the more standard $50,000, said Det. Bill Earley.

"We were very concerned that his [deliberately set fires] escalated from brush to vehicles,'' Earley said. 

Police arrested Viera Sunday, after surveillance allegedly showed him sparking a car fire in the 6100 block of North Oak Hill in Los Angeles. One day earlier, a car was torched in the 400 block of Arroyo Drive. Since November, police believe Viera was responsible for sparking 21 fires in South Pasadena, four in Pasadena and one in Los Angeles.

Viera is a father of three who told Earley that he struggles with anger issues related to childhood trauma, the detective said. Viera admitted responsibility for a majority of the fires, and during a search of his home, authorities recovered corroborating evidence, according to police. Police found Viera's fingerprint on an incendiary device. 

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