A 44-year-old man suspected of having caused several fires to start on Wednesday in the Ardèche, with around 1,200 hectares burned, “acknowledged the facts with which he is accused”, announced the Privas prosecutor’s office in a press release on Thursday. The suspect “who had a significant alcohol level during his arrest” confessed quickly.
A 44-year-old man suspected of having caused several fires to start on Wednesday in the Ardèche, with around 1,200 hectares burned, “acknowledged the facts with which he is accused”, announced the Privas prosecutor’s office in a press release on Thursday. The suspect “who had a significant alcohol level during his arrest” confessed after being “confronted with numerous testimonies collected by the investigators” establishing his presence and that of his car at the start of the fires, according to the same source.
Arrested on Wednesday
Placed in police custody late Wednesday morning at the Largentière gendarmerie company, the man must be presented on Friday before the investigating judge of the Privas court, according to prosecutor Cécile Deprade. A total of 12 fire starts were recorded on Wednesday in Ardèche, according to the press release.
“More precise hearings will come to draw the outline of his responsibility for all the fire starts”, specified the prosecutor of Privas.
Resumption of fire
The intervention of 600 firefighters supported by five canadairs, a Dash plane, a helicopter and a hundred ground vehicles made it possible to fix the fire Thursday morning, without victims to deplore and without destruction of housing, according to the authorities. Firefighters noted a resumption of fire in the early afternoon, according to information obtained by AFP from the command of relief operations in Ardèche.