Man stands trial for twelve arsons in Solothurn
Published: Monday, Sep 16th 2024, 04:40
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A 35-year-old man will stand trial for multiple arson at the Bucheggberg-Wasseramt district court on Monday (today). The public prosecutor's office accuses the Swiss national of setting a total of twelve fires in the Wasseramt region in spring 2022.
The series of fires in Wasseramt, a rural region south of the cantonal capital of Solothurn, caused great uncertainty, fear and mutual mistrust.
From Saturday to Sunday in the period from April 3 to May 21, 2022 forest houses and the clubhouse of a hornussen club as well as warehouses burned. There were also arsons at a detached house, carpentry workshops and a school building. No persons were injured.
Intensive police investigations led to the arrest of the suspected arsonist at the end of May 2022. Video footage from the surveillance system at the Kriegstetten school building, the site of the last arson, showed a person entering the school building - and leaving again shortly before the fire broke out.
The Solothurn public prosecutor's office has charged the Swiss man with multiple counts of arson. The sentence demanded by the public prosecutor's office is not known. The defense will also present its motion at the hearing at the district court.
Member of the fire department
The accused, who was also a member of a local fire department, denies the allegations according to earlier information from the public prosecutor's office. However, there is an overwhelming burden of proof against the accused in five fires, according to the public prosecutor's office.
The accused underwent a psychiatric assessment. He was temporarily remanded in custody. He successfully defended himself against this before the High Court. However, the public prosecutor's office obtained an order from the Federal Supreme Court that the man be monitored with the help of an electronic GPS tracking device (electronic monitoring).
The district court of Bucheggberg-Wasseramt will open the verdict against the man on Friday of this week.
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