A man was charged on Thursday for starting California's third largest wildfire in 2013, which burnt hundreds of square miles of land in Yosemite National Park and the Stanislaus National Forest. 

Keith Matthew Emerald was condemned by a grand jury that turned a four count indictment against him.

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Emerald was allegedly the one who started a campfire on August 17, 2013 in a fire-prohibited area. 

Fire began to spread beyond his control and later turned into a massive Rim Fire. 

The fire raged for a duration of two months, damaging 400 square miles of land, destroying 11 homes, and costing an estimated U.S.$125M to combat. 

Emerald was rescued by a helicopter an hour after the fire was reported. In the aftermath, investigators focused on Emerald and interrogated him for several weeks. 

Through repetitive interrogations done by investigators, they said that there were instances that Emerald admitted he started the fire while other times he denied it. 

According to Emerald's initial statement, he was hunting for deer using a bow and caused a rock to slide which sparked, starting the fire. 

He then allegedly suggested that the fire was caused by marijuana growers in the area. 

It was only when investigators told him that his name would be kept from the media that Emerald acknowledged it was his own doing.

Although he once again recanted his statement later on, a man told investigators that he had picked up Emerald around the time the fire started and Emerald admitted he'd started a campfire which had gotten out of control.  

In a written statement, U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner said that the Rim Fire was consiedered as one of the largest in California history and had caused tremendous environmental and economic harm.

He added that charges leveled against Matthews are a consideration of the harm that he did which inevitably cannot be undone. 

The charges were the result of an investigation by the Tuolumne County district attorney's office and the U.S. Forest Service.

TagsCalifornia wildfire, California fire blaze, Keith Matthew Emerald, 2013 California fire