Suspect in custody, accused of starting fires in bosque

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – A woman is in custody for setting 12 fires in Albuquerque’s bosque Wednesday morning. Albuquerque Police Department says officers witnessed 46-year-old Cristina Castorena-Noble igniting a fire near 2115 2nd St. SW, south of the Hispanic Cultural Center.

Bystanders out in the bosque tried helping by jumping in to stop her and they say this is becoming an all too common problem that needs to end.

“It’s sad, it brings sadness to my heart that they are doing this. It’s awful to have that feeling that its going to be destroyed because somebody intentionally starts a fire and I just really think that they should take it into consideration and not do these things,” said Gloria Apodaca who lives near the bosque.

Castorena-Noble has a long criminal rap sheet with everything from damage to property, burglary and other fire-related crimes. Dating nearly two years to the day, she was arrested for starting a string of five fires in the South Valley that stretched a mile long from Gun Club to Don Felipe. The charges however were dropped after she was determined to be incompetent.

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last month, Castorena-Noble was accused of breaking into an Albuquerque barber shop, causing damage and stealing stuff from inside. It resulted in a warrant out for her arrest in Today, APD’s helicopter helped locate Castorena-Noble and officers who responded to the scene actually saw her ignite one of the 12 fires. Those who frequent the bosque say something must be done.

“That would be sad, I ride on the bike a lot in the Bosque, I like the Bosque trails,” said Time Brooks. “Devastating its horrifying because it could affect our whole neighborhood through the whole Bosque because we all live here,” Apodaca added.

For the time being, trails south of the Hispanic Cultural Center will remain closed as firefighters continue to clear out any hot spots that may be leftover. After being detained, Castorena-Noble was taken to the hospital where police say she complained of body aches, unrelated to the incident. Castorena-Noble is now at MDC, charged with arson.