Charente man sentenced to 12 years in prison for starting dozens of wildfires

A man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for starting 32 fires in Charente, south-west France, between July 2022 and October 2023.

The 32-year-old man, father of two, was convicted by the Charente criminal court on September 18 and the sentence was in line with the sentence requested by the senior prosecutor, reports Franceinfo with AFP.

The court also ordered 10 years of post-sentence supervision, including compulsory treatment. Additionally, the man must work and compensate the victims, and will be banned from living in Charente or working in the forestry sector in future.

His lawyer said the sentence was inappropriate, but the man did not intend to appeal. 

Among the fires was one that destroyed nearly 150 hectares of woodland, as well as a fire at an agricultural building near the man's home containing 1,000 tonnes of straw.

Around 2,000 firefighters were mobilised to deal with the different fires, with the total damage estimated at almost €2million.

More than that, the fires he started in 2022 came during a time when firefighters were already heavily mobilised to tackle major wildfires in neighbouring Gironde. 

‘A ticking time bomb’

During his trial, the man cited personal difficulties, noting an upbringing marked by domestic violence, financial difficulties, the loss of a baby and problems with alcohol. 

“I may have tried a little too hard to get people to talk to me,” he told the court according to AFP. 

The prosecutor had described him as a "ticking time bomb" during his closing arguments and said he deserved an "extremely severe" criminal response.

Human activity is behind most wildfires in France. Agriculture Ministry data for 2024 showed that, where the cause could be identified, 88% of wildfires were linked to human activity, while 12% had natural causes. Of those linked to people, 31% were caused by arson. 

So far, 474 arrests have been made this summer in relation to wildfires.