The firefighter was held in custody after being arrested by the Judicial Police in Coimbra on suspicion of five forest fires.
A source from the Center’s directorate told the Lusa news agency that the young man was arrested on 13th June, in compliance with a warrant issued by the Department of Investigation and Criminal Action of (DIAP) of Coimbra, and he was sentenced to pre-trial detention the following day after Judicial interrogation.
The fires were started in bush, eucalyptus and pine trees in Marmeleira, Souselas, in the municipality of Coimbra, between April 4 and May 25, and burned an area of approximately 20,000 square meters.
“It just did not reach higher proportions due to the prompt intervention of the firemen,” says the same source, noting that the firefighter belongs to a corporation outside the district of Coimbra.