This intentional fire started on Saturday February 6th at around 3:45 pm approximately on National Route 123 between kilometers 159 and 161 in Mercedes, Corrientes.
Two witnesses who were traveling on the same Route saw a person getting into a vehicle with flames that were increasing in intensity a few meters away. The vehicle started, was moving slowly and did not pass the witnesses’ vehicle, so they decided to accelerate and overtake it enough to stop a few kilometers ahead, film it as it passed, and record the license plate.
They filed a complaint and the entire investigation began, with excellent work with the rural police, a specialized police force in the province that was able to determine that the registered owner no longer had the vehicle, as it had been sold 5 months ago. They went to the dealership and obtained the person’s information.
From there, the prosecution led by Dr. Gerardo Cabral, Rural and Environmental Investigation Prosecutor of the Third Judicial District, issued orders, requested judges to issue the search warrant, seizure, and arrest warrant, which occurred today.
The intentional fire consumed more than 6,500 hectares of land including pastures, eucalyptus, and paradise tree plantations in the Mercedes and Amado areas, allegedly started by this man.
“First of all, we have criminal jurisdiction, we do not have administrative or misdemeanor jurisdiction in the province, which has 5 rural and environmental prosecution offices that deal with rural and environmental crimes. Redundantly speaking, the Prosecution Office under my charge has been in operation for 6 years, and I handle everything related to the central south of the province of Corrientes,” explained Dr. Gerardo Cabral, Rural and Environmental Prosecutor of Corrientes, to Noticias Ambientales.
“Regarding fires, particularly small fires, instructions are given to the police to apply a misdemeanor, initiate an administrative inquiry with a fine, and apply days of arrest for actual fires,” he added.
He continued, “We progress with the investigation, using all the available technologies at our disposal, including drones to assess the damage. Many times it is quite difficult to determine the perpetrator, and we do not always succeed, because as you know, in rural fires it is very difficult to trace the person who started it, since in 95% of cases it is human activity that initiates the fire.”
“We are dealing with an arson crime. In this case, it is negligent, and in many cases with the serious intention of causing a danger either to the home or to the environment in general. We live in an area with a lot of forestry, livestock, and it puts at risk, of course, all the activity,” he stated.
This is a intentional fire case. There are two key witnesses who were driving by and saw this man getting into a car.
The fire was started on the roadside, between the fence and the road. In other words, it was deliberately ignited.
Another detail is that it occurred right in front of a eucalyptus plantation, showing a clear intention to start a fire and cause damage. The perpetrator could face a sentence of 3 to 10 years in prison.
What were the dimensions of the fire caused by this person?
We are talking about approximately 6000 hectares or more, according to the property owner’s complaint. It affected a eucalyptus plantation, a paradise tree plantation, a pasture (whether it was ryegrass or oats, I am not certain), and fenced fields. Currently, the fire is under control.
In the vehicle, an lighter was found. The man does not smoke, and there was a relatively new lighter with little use. Therefore, we believe that this is the item that was used.
Firefighters are currently working to determine the origin point of the fire and the extent of the damage caused.
Why did he do it?
We have seized the man’s cell phone, who works as a truck driver. We found that he had been dismissed from his job on that same Saturday, which was the establishment he set on fire.
Out of spite, he intentionally sought the location, and on his way from our city to his house, which is about 100 kilometers away, he went exactly where the only plantation was located. In other words, there was a clear intention.
Why is Environmental Crime not classified in Argentina?
For a long time, environmental prosecutors across the country have been fighting for this. We are part of the Argentine Association of Environmental Prosecutors. We eagerly await the blessed reform of the Penal Code. Unlike Paraguay and Peru, for example, which already have the environment as a protected legal asset.
The bad and important thing is to see that we have many fires in the province of Corrientes, and they are all intentional fires, that’s the truth.
Following the instructions of Rural and Environmental Prosecutor Dr. Gerardo Cabrales, the rural officers, with the collaboration of Police personnel from the Investigations Brigade and GTO of the city of Paso de los Libres, executed a Search Warrant at a residence located on Martin de Güemes street in the town of Guavirabí, Corrientes.
There, they seized the Renault Megane car, a lighter, a cell phone, and detained citizen ANTONIO ALEJANDRO R. around 37 years old. He would be directly linked to these intentional fires that caused so much damage, making him the first arsonist arrested in this wave of fires.
This is an exceptional situation where the witnesses realized that this person started the fire and the remorse shown by these two individuals for not having extinguished the fire. They immediately reported it.
It is important to note that the grass was dry, yellow, with 45ºC heat, and it immediately spread towards the plantation, causing a catastrophe.
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