LOS ANGELES, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Police said on Thursday they had arrested a suspect in the California wildfire that killed five firefighters, destroyed 34 homes and charred an area nearly three times the size of Manhattan.

"Today I'm announcing that we have we a suspect in custody for the Esperanza Fire," a Riverside County Sheriff's spokesman told reporters.

The spokesman said sheriff's investigators would ask prosecutors to charge Raymond Oyler with the murder of the five firefighters as well as arson.

The fire, which broke out last week and was immediately suspected to be arson by investigators, blackened some 63 square miles (160 sq km) near the resort community of Palm Springs before it was fully contained on Monday.

Officials had issued a $500,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in the fire, which destroyed 34 homes and 20 outbuildings.

The five firefighters, part of a U.S. Forest Service crew, died after leaving their engine to protect endangered homes on a ridge when flames raced up a hill and overtook them.

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