A 51-year-old Moroccan migrant has been convicted for an arson attack that destroyed four acres of forest last week, on July 8, in Saint-Gilles. However, despite the severe arson attack and a lengthy criminal record, he was only given a suspended sentence and will serve no jail time unless he reoffends.
At 1:45 p.m., four villas in the area were evacuated as flames spread, and the fire department attempted to put out the fire. News reports indicate that the homes came dangerously close to catching on fire. Notably, the arson attack occurred during a heatwave and the area was experiencing drought. As the New York Times notes, wildfires have been blazing across Europe due to the ongoing heatwave.
However, in this case, the convicted Moroccan claimed he was only trying to put out the fire.
“I was trying to put it out,” the Moroccan migrant told the Nîmes Criminal Court on Friday, July 11.. “I went into the forest to sleep, and I saw the flames, the fire had barely moved, so I approached. I threw my water bottle and tried to block it with branches.”
However, according to a witness, the man was not acting in a heroic manner, as reported in French news paper Midi Libre.
“He explains that he saw you fanning the flames with branches and, when he shouted, you ran away,” said judge Alexia Bouchon to the suspect.
The Moroccan man responded: “I didn’t see anyone,” adding he was “traumatized by the fire.”
The fire department determined the flames were man-made and intentional.
The witness who spotted the suspect said he was wearing a blue T-shirt, crouching near a fire he had started and moving planks over it to build up the flames.
The 51-year-old Moroccan was at the scene of the fire when it started and lives in Saint-Gilles. In November 2024, he was already arrested for starting an illegal fire. At the time, he was prosecuted for “destruction of other people’s property.”
The prosecutor in the case wanted jail time, deportation, and a ban from French territory for the suspect.
“According to the report, it was a deliberate fire. And the only person closest to the fire was the gentleman. I ask you to sentence him to one year in prison with continued detention. I think it’s right that he’s incarcerated during this period of red alert and heatwave,” the public prosecutor, Stéphane Bertrand, said.
“I am also requesting a 10-year ban from French territory,” he added.
However, the judge declined those requests and instead gave the man a one-year suspended prison sentence, with a mandatory requirement for treatment and work.
The man has been convicted three times between 2018 and 2020, including a fire set last November, “which was quickly extinguished by the request of the police.”
The person stated that he “made a small fire to warm myself. It’s my way of life.”
The public prosecutor said the man represents a threat to public health and has numerous convictions for assault with a weapon, indecent exposure, contempt, sympathizing with terrorists, and disorderly conduct.
However, this is far from the only arson attack involving a foreigner in France. In fact, in one case, a Sudanese migrant burned down 16 apartments, multiple cars, and part of a church, and was still never deported. He also seriously injured one student.
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