Man Detained After Allegedly Setting Fires at Ontario Mills Mall

Panic swept through Ontario Mills Mall on Friday morning, April 10, 2026, as a male suspect allegedly moved through the complex setting fires inside major retail stores.

The incident, which triggered a massive evacuation of the 1.4 million-square-foot shopping center, comes while the city is still reeling from a catastrophic arson attack on a nearby warehouse just one day prior.

The nightmare began around 10:41 a.m. when shoppers inside Nordstrom Rack noticed flames erupting among the clothing racks.

Witness Phillip Burum reported having to alert distracted staff before grabbing a fire extinguisher himself to douse several burning garments.

Moments later, similar fires were reported at True Religion and several other locations within the mall.

Footage from the scene showed a "wild" Friday morning as thick smoke filled the corridors and frantic crowds rushed for the exits.

The Ontario Fire Department arrived just before 11:00 a.m. and confirmed that multiple "suspicious" fires had been extinguished.

While the mall remains closed for the investigation, local police have already detained a male suspect.

Viral images from the scene show an officer pinning a man in a black hooded sweatshirt to the floor outside True Religion.

This spree of retail arson follows a devastating 1.2 million-square-foot warehouse fire on Thursday that caused an estimated $500 million in damage.

That fire, which destroyed a Kimberly-Clark facility, was also allegedly started by a disgruntled employee using a small lighter, the same method reportedly used in the mall attacks.

While authorities have not officially linked the two suspects, the back-to-back attacks have put the Inland Empire on high alert.