Alleged arsonist who 'filmed himself setting FIRE to warehouse full of people' causing $500m in damage says he was inspired by Luigi Mangione

Daily Mail UK ^ | April 11, 2026 | WILKO MARTÍNEZ-CACHERO

[Morgana]

An alleged California arsonist who filmed himself setting a warehouse full of people on fire compared himself to Luigi Mangione after starting the blaze, according to court documents.

Chamel Abdulkarim, 29, allegedly posted a first-person video on Instagram on April 7 igniting multiple pallets at the Kimberly-Clark warehouse in Ontario, per a criminal complaint filed Thursday in the US District Court for the Central District of California viewed by the Daily Mail.

'If you're not going to pay us enough to ******* live or afford to live, at least pay us enough not to do this ****,' Abdulkarim said, according to the complaint.

The footage then allegedly showed his hand holding a lighter as he added, 'Should have paid us enough to ******* live.'

'You know, we may not get paid enough to ******* live,' Abdulkarim said, per the legal filing. 'But these ******* dirt cheap.'

He also said that the '1% is a ******* joke' and claimed that he 'didn't see the share holders picking up a shift,' the complaint added.

During a call with an unidentified witness, Abdulkarim allegedly said his motivation for starting the fire was ******* eight hours, six days … stuck paying rent on a bulls*** *** apartment that I can't afford to ******* live.'

He added that 'a lot of people are going to understand' and compared his actions to when 'Luigi popped that muther****** [sic],' referring to the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024.

[T.B. Yoits]

The roof would not have collapsed if the sprinklers had knocked down the fire. The perpetrator did it with a lighter, not cans of gasoline.

[ridesthemiles]

IF HE REALLY WAS WORKING 6 DAYS/8 HOURS-—HE WAS GETTING 40 HOURS STRAIGHT TIME & 8 HOURS TIME & A HALF.

IF GETTING $15 AN HOUR== $600 STRAIGHT TIME & $22.50 X 8 == $180== $780 A WEEK==ABOUT $3380 a MONTH .

SEEMS LIKE VERY DECENT PAY FOR SOMEONE FROM ANOTHER COUNTRY WHO MOST LIKELY BARELY HAS ANY BASIC SKILLS.

IF A”FAMILY” HERE-—HOW MUCH “ASSISTANCE” ARE THEY GETTING???

ANOTHER REASON TO ONLY HIRE AMERICAN.

IS HE PROFICIENT IN ENGLISH???

OVER $40,000 a year....

[MarlonRando]

thanks for the info on his name! A generous slave he is. Allah loves a hilarious giver.

[Organic Panic]

California.... Burning a corporate manufacturing site...

Professorship At Berkeley incoming.

[Texas Eagle]

Alleged??? He ******* filmed himself setting the ******* fire and ******* explained why he ******* did it.

The Daily Smell. What a bunch of wankers. Excuse my language.

[Bikkuri]

[T.B. Yoits]

I’m not sure in the case of arson it’s possible to put in 100% sufficient systems that can always prevent such a catastrophic fire.

If a sprinkler system can't put out a fire started by one guy with a lighter and some boxes (no chemical soaked rags, no gasoline, etc.), that building cannot be occupied.

Bank on it that the sprinkler system was to code for light industrial use but not for storing that volume of combustibles. Also bank on it that there were no internal walls with closing doors to stop the spread as you would do with combustibles.

I spent a lot of time going through sprinkler system installations for aircraft hangars and multi-use facilities. We even had hangars with two separate systems installed - one for aircraft and another for deployable assets. Someone has to spec the contents, determine the burn rate, determine the water pressure, and of course cut the check.

No one wants to cut the check.

[Salman]

Trump needs to go full Pinochet.

[aquila48]

Yes, he needs to be put out of his misery

[T.B. Yoits]

You better shut the f*ck up

or what?

I take it you're liable for this building and want someone else to pay the damages without looking at the negligence of the owners or operator. Owner, operator, sprinkler consultant, sprinkler installer, or building inspector... which is it?

Clearly not a competitor.

[alloysteel]

There is no distinguishing virtue to the acts of Luigi Mangione. He is a maggot feeding on the corpse of “socialist reform”, a movement that never provided any intellectual stimulation or ordered existence.

[rktman]

It’s always those rich bastards right? Typical fidiot who has no clue.

[fidelis]

As a retired fire inspector, I can say you are spot on. What most people know about the intricacies of modern building fire protection they learned from Hollywood movies.

[FlingWingFlyer]

Chamel Abdulkarim

And he shouted, "Whoa Babboo!"

[T.B. Yoits]

Thanks. It’s good to hear from a professional.

[chopperk]

Luigi made a big impression; hang him.

[Angelino97]

So he's an old school Marxist terrorist. Economics and class struggle.

Don't see many of those these days. Most modern terrorists are motivated by religion, race, or gender.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

https://x.com/i/grok/share/f68b6a801c2d4d9c8c1572a8abbfd332

Chamel Abdulkarim immigrated from Cuba. He is described in multiple news reports as a Cuban national whose immigration status was on hold (or uncertain) at the time of his arrest. facebook.com

This detail comes from coverage of his April 2026 arrest for allegedly starting a massive fire at a Kimberly-Clark warehouse in Ontario, California, where he worked as a 29-year-old resident of Highland, CA. No other foreign country of origin is mentioned in available reports.

[E. Pluribus Unum]