WATCH: Shocking new video shows Border Patrol agent’s planned explosion that started 47,000 acre wildfire
The Arizona Daily Star used the Freedom of Information Act to obtain shocking video showing a Border Patrol Agent Dennis Dickey using explosives that started a 47,000 acre wildfire in Arizona.
Dickey, 37, of Tucson pleaded guilty in September to having started the Sawmill Fire.
"Dickey started the fire by shooting a rifle at a target. Dickey had placed Tannerite, a highly explosive substance, inside the target, intending for it to detonate when shot by a high-velocity firearm bullet," federal prosecutors explained. "Dickey fired shots at the Tannerite target, ultimately causing an explosion that started a fire that spread and resulted in damage to more than 45,000 acres of land managed by the State of Arizona, the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and various private landholders."
On the day the fire started, Wildfire Today estimated the temperature had been between 90 and 100 degrees.
At least 799 firefighters battled the blaze.
"The total losses attributable to the fire, including suppression costs and damage to land and landholdings, totaled more than $8 million," the U.S. attorney's office for the district of Arizona noted.
The intended explosion was detonated as part of a gender reveal party.
Dickey will pay $220,000 in restitution for the fire.
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