Questions, concerns remain after Montgomery Creek woman arrested for setting car ablaze

January 22, 2021 Trevor Montgomery

MONTGOMERY CREEK, Calif. — Authorities say a Shasta County woman with multiple warrants was arrested after setting a car ablaze on Big Bend Road, about a mile north of SR-299E, Monday afternoon, Jan. 18. The fire destroyed a Volkswagen Jetta and burned about a quarter-acre of vegetation, according to Cal Fire-Shasta.

In the wake of Monday’s arrest, Montgomery Creek residents have been left wondering if the arson-suspected car fire could be related to several other vehicle fires that have recently been reported in the same general area.

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Cal Fire-Shasta law enforcement officers and Shasta County Sheriff’s Burney Station deputies were dispatched to the area around 12:45 p.m., after receiving reports of a car fire that was spreading to area vegetation, Cal Fire officials reported after Monday’s arrest.

While firefighters extinguished the blaze, witnesses told law enforcement officials they saw a woman walking south of the fire’s location along Big Bend Road around the same time the fire erupted.

Officials arrested a local woman, Clarrisa Clark, after she reportedly admitted to setting a car ablaze on Big Bend Road, in Montgomery Creek on Monday afternoon. John Cooper/Big Bend ( Shasta County) Community Forum photo

Cal Fire law enforcement officers and local deputies began searching for the woman described by witnesses, eventually locating 24-year-old, Clarissa Ruby Clark, of Montgomery Creek, walking in the area about two hours later.

While interviewing Clark, she admitted to officials that she had started the fire, according to Cal Fire; who said she was subsequently arrested.

Clark was later booked into the Shasta County Jail in Redding on suspicion of arson to property, arson of forestland and carrying a concealed dagger.

Online jail records indicate Clark was also booked on warrant-related charges of vandalism, brandishing a weapon, obstructing an investigation, resisting arrest, and failure to appear; and she remains in custody in lieu of $76,000 bail or bond.

Despite Monday’s arrest, some area residents such as Jonnie Wallace questioned why more of the recent suspicious vehicle and vegetation fires had not led to other arrests.

“If we have a serial arsonist in our town why is law enforcement not taking this more seriously?” Wallace asked on social media.

“Do people have to lose their homes or lives before this is addressed?” Wallace asked. “Is it not worth finding the criminals plaguing this community or is it only worth investigating if it’s a huge company that can be sued for fire damages?”

Montgomery Creek resident, Victoria Green, who has lived in the Big Bend area since 1980, later told SCNS she was glad the Sheriff’s Department and Cal Fire officers were able to locate and arrest the suspected arsonist.

“This has been going on for a while,” Green explained; adding that another person was arrested late last year for similar crimes in the same area.

“The dangers of starting a forest fire are very serious up here. Add to that the potential for loss of property or lives and it can be a very scary and dangerous situation,” Green said; while thanking the officers and deputies involved in Monday’s arrest.

As of this report, Cal Fire had not responded to a request for further information as to whether Clark was suspected of starting any of the other recent vehicle fires reported in the area or if the other fires remain under investigation.

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Trevor Montgomery, 49, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including KRCR News Channel 7 and Mountain Echo in Shasta County, Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.