A Washington grandfather said a stranger lingering near a dead-end road where almost nobody goes immediately caught his attention – moments before smoke began rising from the same stretch of railroad tracks and a devastating wildfire erupted.Paul Child was driving his grandson to pick up a friend Saturday when he noticed a bald man standing near the railroad tracks along West Euclid Road and staring into the tree line."I really didn’t think anything of it at that point," Child told Fox News Digital.SPENCER PRATT REACTS TO SPOKANE DEVASTATION WITH BLUNT WILDFIRE WARNING AND MESSAGE OF FAITHAbout 10 minutes later, Child drove back along the same road and noticed the man was still there.Aaron F.Farinacci was arrested on suspicion of first-degree arson in connection with the Old Trails Fire in eastern Washington.
(Arizona Department of Corrections)"This time he was kind of bent over and looked like he was doing something in the brush or the bushes and the grass and the trees," Child said."When he saw us, then he kind of stood up and was acting kind of nervous."Even Child’s grandson sensed something was off."My grandson said, ‘What’s he doing?’" Child said.The family returned to their home and minutes later, Child’s daughter, Ana Dillon, glanced toward the same stretch of railroad tracks."I just happened to look up and saw a huge cloud of white smoke, then black smoke," Dillon told Fox News Digital.Child immediately connected the smoke to the stranger he had seen lingering near the tree line.Aaron Farinacci, 37, was charged with first-degree arson.
(Spokane County Sheriff’s Office)"The first thing I thought was, ‘That SOB started the fire,’" Child alleged.MYSTERY STRANGER VANISHES AFTER FAMILY SAYS FRANTIC WARNING SAVED THEIR LIVES DURING DEVASTATING HOUSE FIREChild called 911 and tried to reach the only other homeowner on the dead-end stretch of road.The neighbor was not home, but Child reached him by phone and warned that a wildfire was moving to...