Overview
- The fire occurred Tuesday night on the 200 block of 15th Street in Richmond and became a multi‑alarm response after crews were alerted to a second blaze nearby.
- Three relatives died from burn injuries, including a 47‑year‑old man and two young children, and one adult remains critically injured in hospital.
- Police arrested 32‑year‑old Sergio Rivera‑Vega near the scene and booked him on counts of murder and arson causing great bodily injury with bail set at $2.5 million.
- Authorities say the deadly fire was intentionally set and that a separate, earlier fire two doors down was an unrelated suspicious incident with a different suspect arrested.
- Investigators continue forensic and criminal probes to determine motive and the fires’ exact sequence, and the two homes have been red‑tagged as uninhabitable, deepening the family’s immediate housing and recovery needs.