SAN DIEGO — A man arrested on suspicion of setting nine wildfires in East County last month was already on probation for a violent assault, court records show.
CalFire investigators say Allen Dinoyo, 48, started fires in Jamul, Rancho San Diego, Dehesa, La Mesa and San Diego throughout November. The most serious blaze, the Millar Fire on November 20, caused evacuations in Rancho San Diego but did not damage any structures.
Dinoyo was arrested Saturday on nine felony arson counts. Cal Fire has not released details on how the wildfires were started.
"They look for the origin of the fire and then the cause of the fire. So we have to rule out every possible cause to make sure that we're providing an accurate and detailed report," said Cal Fire Capt. Mike Cornette.
Court records reveal Dinoyo is a convicted felon currently on probation after pleading guilty to severely beating a 73-year-old man with a skateboard in 2021, nearly killing him. The victim of that assault, Phil Rager, described the unprovoked attack near Midway and Sports Arena Boulevard while he was riding a bike. "I put my arm up in self defense to block a blow to my face, which probably would have been fatal, and he completely filleted my forearm right to the bone," Rager said. "I was bleeding out."
Rager said there appeared to be no motive for the attack. The judge had promised to sentence Dinoyo to 8 years in prison if he violated his probation, records show.
"When you see these street people carrying a skateboard, they're not skaters. That's a weapon. That's a weapon of choice of these street people," Rager warned.
In 2021, Dinoyo's mother filed a restraining order against him, forcing him to move out of her Spring Valley apartment. She alleged, "He is on drugs & uses meth... He has mental problems. He can be violent."
Dinoyo is scheduled to be arraigned on the arson charges Wednesday afternoon in East County court.