Owner of Esparto fireworks company arrested at Disney World
Sacramento Bee • • nation
Key Points:
- Kenneth Chee, founder and CEO of a fireworks company linked to an illegal pyrotechnics network in California, was arrested at Disney World's Hollywood Studios in Florida in connection with a deadly explosion in Esparto last summer.
- Chee faces multiple felony charges, including seven counts of murder, corresponding to the seven fatalities caused by the July 1 explosion at a Yolo County property storing illegal fireworks.
- At least six other individuals were also arrested Thursday as part of a Yolo County grand jury investigation into the incident, with formal indictments expected to be announced on Friday.
- Chee's company, Devastating Pyrotechnics, employed the victims of the explosion and had previously been fined over $200,000 for workplace safety violations; the company was also linked to illegal fireworks in Commerce and San Jose.
- Despite being licensed to work with fireworks in California since 2008, Chee was ineligible for a federal explosives permit due to a prior violent felony conviction.
