South Lake Tahoe man arrested on charges of arson, domestic violence and assault of police officer

A South Lake Tahoe man is facing a slew of charges after allegedly assaulting his girlfriend after telling her they were going to die, setting his apartment on fire with gasoline, and burning a police officer.

A 911 call came into the South Lake Tahoe Police Department (SLTPD) on Wednesday, September 9 at 2:00 p.m. from a woman who said her boyfriend was pouring gasoline inside his apartment after physically assaulting her. As the girlfriend was on the phone with police dispatch she told them the apartment was then on fire.

When the first SLTPD officer arrived at the apartment located at 673 James Avenue, he found 33-year-old Brandon Rothermel outside with a lighter in his hand. Rothermel refused the officer's commands to stop and attempted to go back into the apartment. As the officer attempted to detain Rothermel they struggled and Rothermel grabbed the officer’s handcuffs and refused to let them go. Rothermel also used his lighter on the officer, resulting in a minor burn to the officer’s skin.

As other officers arrived they helped place Rothermel under arrest. The South Lake Tahoe Fire Department was then able to extinguish the fire which resulted in damage to property inside of the apartment.

Detectives responded to the scene and contacted the victim. She reported Rothermel had told her they were going to die today and started spreading gasoline around the apartment, some of which got on her. She said Rothermel prevented her from leaving the apartment. She had to fight him off and was able to escape.

A search warrant was obtained and detectives recovered several containers of gasoline and a lighter in the living room. They also recovered a firearm that was not registered to Rothermel.

Rothermel is currently in the El Dorado County Jail in South Lake Tahoe on a bail hold of $500,000. The felony charges against him are Arson Causing Great Bodily Harm, Resisting an Officer, Inflicting Corporal Injury, False Imprisonment and Arson of an Inhabited Structure.