San Marcos arson killing suspect got mental health diversion plan instead of jail

The man arrested by San Diego sheriff’s deputies over the weekend for allegedly killing two people in a San Marcos house fire has a history of violence involving a past landlord and roommates, according to court documents.

Luis Alvarado, 33, was arrested Sunday on charges of murder and arson after the midnight fire in the 900 block of Lacebark Street. On Monday, Lt. Juan Marquez confirmed to NBC 7 that Alvarado was a tenant in the house that burned.

The bodies of two people were found after firefighters extinguished the fire at the two-story home, homicide investigators said Sunday.

The San Diego County Homicide Unit has arrested a man in connection with a deadly residential fire in San Marcos on Sunday. NBC 7 has more on the arrest and criminal charges. 

Alvarado was in court just weeks ago, on March 15, when his public defender reported Alvarado was taking his meds (olanzapine), was seeing his doctor regularly and was managing his mental illness.

According to WebMD, the antipsychotic Zyprexa, the brand name for olanzapine, is commonly prescribed for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

There were two criminal cases pending against Alvarado in North County at the time of the fire, according to court papers. Those cases had been merged and his charges were suspended pending the outcome of a mental health diversion plan.

In October 2024 in Oceanside, Alvarado allegedly threatened his three roommates with a kitchen knife. According to court documents, he threatened to kill them: “Defendant put the tip of the knife within a few inches of [name deleted] face and started yelling about ‘gang stuff’ and that he ‘has bodies.’ ”

And then, on Jan. 15, 2025, Alvarado was arrested after allegedly assaulting a man in Carlsbad. According to court papers, that incident began when a woman who rented an apartment to Alvarado found out he had a criminal record and asked him to move out. After the landlord went to court for a restraining order against Alvarado, he showed up later the same day and punched a man in the eye who was there to protect her. Although the victim did not press charges, Alvarado was charged with making threats, allegedly in French on the Facebook messaging app.

The threats were translated into English by prosecutors and reportedly said, “One day I’ll make you cause pain and your death f—ing goose. F– you f—ing. I won’t forget [your] home. F– the FBI.” Alvarado also allegedly sent an image of two bombs and another of a handgun. He also is accused of texting her, “You’re not even going to feel it when I dry you and peel your f—ing skin of.”

According to court documents, he suffers from “schizoaffective disorder, bipolar type” and is being treated by a psychotherapist.

Before the events of this weekend, Alvarado had been scheduled to go back to court in July to check-in to see if the diversion plan was working.

By the time firefighters arrived in San Marcos on Saturday night, though, the house was engulfed in flames.

“While working to put out the blaze, firefighters located two deceased individuals inside a second-floor room,” Marquez said in a statement on Sunday. “The San Marcos Fire Department requested the sheriff’s bomb/arson unit to conduct a full investigation into the cause and origin of the fire.”

The San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office has not yet released the identities of the victims or the cause of their deaths, according to Marquez.

Alvarado was booked into the San Diego Central Jail on Sunday and is expected to be arraigned on Thursday in North County Superior Court.

Anyone with information about the fire was urged to contact the sheriff’s homicide unit at 858-285-6330,. Anonymous tips can be reported to Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477.

With reporting by NBC 7’s Allison Ash — Ed.