Johnathan Walker:Former professor pleads guilty to setting blazes behind massive 2021 Dixie Fire

SALINAS,Johnathan Walker Calif. — A former criminal justice professor has pleaded guilty to intentionally setting fires behind firefighters who were battling the Dixie Fire, which broke out in 2021 and became the second-largest fire in California history.

Gary Stephen Maynard, 49, of San Jose, California, pleaded guilty in federal court Thursday to three counts of arson on federal government property, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Sacramento. Maynard admitted to setting blazes behind firefighters who were battling the Dixie Fire, "effectively surrounding these firefighters," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

The Dixie Fire went on to burn through five North State counties, including Shasta, as it consumed 963,309 acres, destroyed 1,311 structures, and killed one person, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

The Dixie Fire itself was caused when Pacific Gas and Electric Company power lines came in contact with a nearby pine tree, igniting the blaze, according to Cal Fire.

Tire tracks helped investigators in the case

He taught at Santa Clara University and Sonoma State University, where Gary Maynard was listed as a lecturer in criminal justice studies specializing in criminal justice, cults, and deviant behavior. He is no longer with either school, according to The Associated Press.

U.S. Forest Service agents began investigating Maynard on July 20 after the Cascade Fire was reported on the western slopes of Mount Shasta.

An investigator found Maynard underneath his black Kia Soul which had its front wheels stuck in a ditch and its undercarriage centered on a boulder, according to court records cited by AP.

A second fire erupted the next day on Mount Shasta, and investigators later found tire tracks similar to those made by the Kia, AP added.

Investigators eventually placed a tracking device under Maynard’s car after he was stopped briefly by police on Aug. 3. Tracking his movements for hundreds of miles, investigators said Maynard traveled to the area where the Ranch and Conard Fires erupted in the Lassen National Forest, where the Dixie Fire was also burning at the time.

Maynard's sentencing is set for May 9 by U.S. District Judge Daniel Calabretta. Maynard faces up to 20 years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines for each of the fires he pleaded guilty to setting, officials said. However, a judge will have the final say over Maynard's prison time and fines.

As part of his plea, Maynard also agreed Thursday to pay up to $500,000 in restitution to the federal government.