Kelowna man pleads guilty to arson on Knox Mountain

A Kelowna man pleaded guilty in B.C. Provincial Court on July 10 for arson and assault after lighting fires on Knox Mountain. Robert Teal was arrested on Oct. 24, 2025 [...]

Kelowna man pleads guilty to arson on Knox Mountain Published 6:39 pm Monday, July 13, 2026 A Kelowna man pleaded guilty in B.C. Provincial Court on July 10 for arson and assault after lighting fires on Knox Mountain. Robert Teal was arrested on Oct. 24, 2025 and charged the following day with arson, property damage, and assaulting a peace officer.

The man has been in custody since his arrest. The charges stemmed from a fire on Knox Mountain the same day as Teal’s arrest. The Kelowna Fire Department was called to visible flames on Knox at about 3:30 p.m. and quickly extinguished the blaze.

Before crews arrived, construction workers in the area reported seeing a man in camouflage targeting the workers and surveillance equipment near the base of the mountain. In the Kelowna Provincial Court on July 10, Teal pleaded guilty to one count of arson causing property damage and one count of assault, the lesser charge of assaulting a peace officer. Teal is expected to be in court for sentencing on Aug. 10.