‘Frustrated’ accused Palisades firebug Jonathan Rinderknecht interrupts fed arraignment to grill judge about his ‘detainment’

LOS ANGELES — The deranged firebug accused of igniting the devastating Palisades Fire interrupted his federal arraignment in California to grill the judge about his “detainment” — as new videos surfaced showing his past run-ins with cops.

Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, pleaded not guilty Thursday afternoon in a Los Angeles courtroom for the first time since being slapped with federal charges for sparking the raging inferno that leveled 7,000 homes and businesses, caused $150 billion in damages and left 12 people dead.

The alleged arsonist — shackled and dressed in tan jail garb — interrupted the hearing to question the judge about his custody arrangements before his lawyers quickly told him to pipe down and briefly escorted him out of the courtroom.

His hotshot sports lawyer, whose clients have included NBA players Magic Johnson and Malik Beasley, later told reporters that, despite pushing 30, his client is a “young man” who is confused and frustrated about being in jail.

Rinderknecht has been jailed without bail since his Oct. 8 arrest in Florida.

“What we saw was a great deal of frustration from him; he’s a young man who is not really clear on why he is in jail, and he has a lot of frustration and anxiety right now,” defense attorney Steven Haney told reporters outside the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building.

“I don’t think it was anything unusual or unordinary. As a defense attorney, I kind of like to see that kind of emotion from a client; it makes me understand and feel that they truly believe they are innocent, and that’s kind of what you saw in the courtroom today.”

Haney added that the federal case against his client lacks sufficient evidence.

“They’re trying to associate and blame him for a fire that he was possibly associated with on Jan. 1, the Lachman Fire, with a fire that started seven days later, which is the Palisades Fire. Why are they blaming him for whatever the fire department didn’t do?”

Rinderknecht was arrested at his Florida home and extradited to the Golden State after a federal grand jury in Los Angeles indicted him with arson affecting property used in interstate commerce, destruction of property by means of fire and a count of timber set afire.

A trial date has been set for Dec. 16.

Federal prosecutors alleged that Rinderknecht was living in Los Angeles in January when he allegedly ventured to a popular hiking area in Palisades Hills — while listening to a rap song with lyrics about setting a fire — and sparked a brush fire on New Year’s Day.

The accused arsonist had been listening to the twisted lyrics for days before the fire, authorities said.

The French-born madman fled the fiery scene and reported the blaze to 911 — but then turned around and followed first responders back to the scene, where he eerily watched them battle the flames.

But unbeknownst to the firefighters, the flames were never fully extinguished and continued to smolder underground, exploding days later into the deadly Palisades Fire when fierce winds tore through the area, prosecutors said.

The roaring firestorm destroyed large swaths of LA for weeks, cementing itself as one of the City of Angels’ most destructive blazes.

Prosecutors said the alleged pyromaniac also had a twisted obsession with fire.

Months before the hellish inferno, he allegedly used ChatGPT to generate an image of a burning city while crowds of people fled — and later told the AI bot he “literally burnt the Bible” and it “felt amazing.”

Rinderknecht relocated to Florida weeks after the catastrophic fire was finally extinguished.

Newly released body camera footage, obtained by Scripps News, also shows Rinderknecht, who worked as an Uber driver, being pulled over twice in Florida — once in August and again in September — for speeding.

The Biden supporter — whose social media revealed President Trump-hating bile and hypocritical eco-apocalypse postings — has since retained Haney and California-based attorney Jacob Gillick.

He faces up to 45 years in prison if convicted on all counts.

Rinderknecht is due back in court on Nov. 12.