Suspects in Encino spark dumpster fire with explosive

Encino residents already dealing with a rash of burglaries need help tracking down a pair of suspects who started a dumpster fire in their neighborhood Thursday morning.

The alleged arson happened at about 1 a.m. in the 5000 block of Rubio Avenue, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. Security camera video captured a dark pickup truck approaching the industrial dumpster sitting outside a home under construction. It parked next to it briefly before the suspect in the passenger seat lit an object, potentially a firework, and tossed it out the window. 

It lands in the trash and explodes as the truck drives away. A burst of light appears from the dumpster before the contents inside catch on fire. Firefighters arrived about 10 minutes later and extinguished the flames within a few minutes.

The LAFD has not determined what kind of explosive started the fire. Neighbors believed it was a Molotov cocktail.

The neighborhood, which has experienced a string of burglaries in the past month, expressed frustrations with the city and law enforcement. 

"We're doing what we need to do to protect ourselves because we feel like we can't rely on the city as much," one resident said. "Investing in patrols, people getting guns, banding together, neighborhood watch and all the kinds of security measures we can think of to harden the targets here because it's getting absolutely out of hand."

The Los Angeles Police Department said it is stepping up patrols and taking other proactive police measures to help alleviate neighbors' concerns.