The São Paulo Public Security Secretariat (SSP-SP) reported that it arrested, this Thursday (29), the tenth suspect involved in a fire in the state since the 21st.
The 39-year-old man set fire to several areas of a sugarcane plantation in the city of Pindorama, near São José do Rio Preto. The fire spread across a large area of the plantation, a common occurrence due to the exceptionally dry weather in recent weeks. The arrest was made after security guards at a company nearby called the police.
A bicycle, a lighter, a box of matches and R$158 were seized from the man. In his statement to the police, he said he had used drugs before the crime. The man was sent to the Catanduva Public Jail.
This case and the other nine that resulted in recent arrests for arson are not related to each other, according to the SSP-SP.
The wave of fires in the state has already caused estimated losses of more than R$1 billion, according to the state government. More than 7,000 public agents worked to fight the flames last week. Two people died while fighting the fires.
