A 35-year-old ex-volunteer firefighter, suspected of being the cause of several fires that occurred in the town of Vif (Isère) this month of August, was imprisoned, announced Thursday August 25 the parquet floor of Grenoble.
His placement in pre-trial detention on Tuesday follows his indictment for "
destruction by fire of wood, forest, moors, maquis or plantation of others that may cause harm to people
", detailed the public prosecutor of Grenoble Éric Vaillant , in a message to the editors.
These facts, which are criminal, are punishable by a 15-year prison sentence, he added.
"The need to feel indispensable"
The alleged arsonist, who “
denies the facts
”, is suspected of having started several fires in Vif on August 4, 11 and 21.
The investigation was carried out by the gendarmes of the research brigade of the Gendarmerie of Grenoble.
The most significant fire affected 20 hectares of vegetation on the Petit Brion mountain and threatened an inhabited area.
About 80 firefighters had been mobilized.
The Isère departmental fire and rescue service told AFP on Thursday that the suspect had "
remained a volunteer firefighter for a very short time
" in its "
staff
".
A former volunteer firefighter suspected of being the author of two fires in early August in the Hérault was also remanded in custody for arson.
Read alsoVolunteer firefighters at the heart of firefighting
At the end of July, still in the Hérault, a forester, also a volunteer firefighter, had admitted in police custody to being the author of several fires, explaining his actions by the adrenaline rush they caused and a need to "
social recognition
.
A behavior confirmed in July in an interview with AFP by psychiatrist Pierre Lamothe, a specialist in criminology: “
For arsonist firefighters, there is often a need to feel indispensable.
We create the possibility of being a saviour, we become a hero in a few hours
”.
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