BREAKING: Oregon arsonist, climate educator couple arrested for impersonating firefighters in LA
Dustin Nehl was previously convicted of arson in Woodburn; Jennifer Nehl was highlighted by federal NOAA for climate education for incarcerated youth in 2023
An Oregon couple was arrested Sunday for impersonating firefighters in the area burned by the Pacific Palisades near Los Angeles, California, according to the Los Angeles Times. The Times, citing law enforcement sources, identified the couple as Dustin Nehl, 31, and Jennifer Nehl, 44. Mr. Nehl’s social media accounts say he lives in Woodburn, Oregon; Mrs. Nehl’s say she lives in Jefferson or Scio, Oregon.
The couple allegedly drove a full-size firetruck emblazoned with “Roaring River Fire” into the recently burned area, claiming they were volunteer firefighters. Police were contacted when someone noticed the fire truck, which had California plates, did not look quite right, according to the Times. There is no “Roaring River Fire” in Oregon
The Nehls combine a longstanding interest in fire, climate change and weather, according to media reports and the couples’ social media accounts.
Dustin Nehl was sentenced in 2016 to five years in prison and three years post-incarceration supervision for arson and possession of a destructive device related to damage caused in incidents from 2013 to 2016 to a country club and a water treatment facility in Woodburn, according to a contemporaneous report from The Woodburn Independent and The Oregonian.
His Facebook posts over the years mostly focus on heavy equipment and motor sports, with some posts critical of Joe Biden and one post from July 31, 2024, sharing a video from the “climate.united_we_can” account saying “High temperatures, wind and extreme dryness have triggered wildfires,” as fires raged throughout Oregon.
On July 4, 2021, Nehl posted a photo on Facebook with the caption “Tired of just watching it burn? Then give the forests back to the loggers and learn.”
Jennifer Nehl, formerly Jennifer Hastings, is an educator who focuses on teaching weather and climate to incarcerated youth, according to her Facebook and LinkedIn pages. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration highlighted Hastings in 2023 for helping her students create “weather raps,” “in which they discuss weather safety, process their concerns about climate change and environmental hazards, and explore the ways that underserved communities are more vulnerable to environmental hazards.”
According to law enforcement sources cited by the LA Times, the Nehls were apprehended with burglary tools. The couple have not been charged with burglary.
This is a developing story.
UPDATE 1:11 pm Monday:
I just got off the phone with Dustin Nehl’s mother, Marlene Nehl, of Scio, Oregon.
Marlene Nehl told me the following:
Dustin Nehl and Jennifer Nehl went to Los Angeles County approximately 10 days ago “strictly to help” with the fires.
Both Dustin and Jennifer (who goes by Jenni) have backgrounds in wildland firefighting.
Dustin and Jennifer drove a firetruck bearing the words “Roaring River Fire” to LA County. Justin bought the truck at auction approximately four years ago. He sold it to a fire engine collector, but then bought it back approximately 1.5 years ago.
The Roaring River flows just behind Marlene’s house near Scio, Oregon.
Dustin typically kept the fire truck parked near Marlene’s house. He used it to provide fire suppression support at neighborhood 4th of July fireworks, etc. Marlene considered it “nice to have around.”
Marlene downplayed Dustin’s 2016 conviction for arson in Woodburn, Oregon: “He was with a bunch of kids. His friend got illegal fireworks and they were setting them off right next to the water tower.” He served a four-year sentence, and was released in 2020.
The Santiam fire, one of several massive fires that burned in Oregon in 2020, burned near Marlene’s house. Dustin, having recently been released from prison, was living with her at the time. He did not yet have the fire truck.
Dustin and Jennifer, whom Marlene describes as “very smart; very responsible,” entered into what Marlene believes is a domestic partnership in November 2024. Jennifer was pregnant at the time with the couple’s baby.
The baby tragically passed away in late December 2024, aged three weeks. This comports with posts on Jennifer’s social media accounts.
Dustin and Jennifer were planning to go on a vacation this month, but were so impressed by food donations from neighbors that they decided to go to southern California to “do something to help” with the fires. Dustin had not previously taken the fire truck on the road to fight fires.
Marlene has not spoken with Dustin or Jennifer since their arrest yesterday.
Very strange, part of "keep Portland weird" crowd? Certainly doesn't help our image nationally, tough to think it could get much worse. Let's see if the left circles the wagons around this couple since they appear to support the globalist philosophy. On a side note regarding possessing burglary tools, fire engines could be considered a large B&E tool box, that's what they carry to access buildings on fire.
I want to think this couple's story will not lend itself to generalizations about the culture. Sometimes kooks are just kooks.