Environment

Man arrested in connection to arson fires in Australia

by Amy Judd | February 12, 2009 at 11:45 am

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A man has been arrested in connection to the arson fires in Australia, but police are not releasing any more details yet.

Previously:

The suspicion that some of the Australia Wildfires that killed about 180 people were started by arsonists is rising, as another deliberately lit fire broke out in Ivanhoe near Melbourne and police have release a computer sketch of a man in his 20s that they are interested in speaking with. Premier John Brumby has confirmed that they are looking at arson as one of the most likely causes.

A volunteer firefighter has also been found dead in a suspicious house fire in Melbourne, but it is not known at this time if there is any connection.

15 fires are still burning across Victoria, while 17 have been brought under control.

Brumby said Wednesday a large police team was making progress with its investigation into the blazes that had killed 181 people and destroyed 1,069 homes. "It's devastating," he said.

Police Chief Commissioner Christine Nixon said evidence was mounting that the Marysville inferno was deliberately lit.

"There are a number of the other fires that fire investigators believe have been suspicious because of the way the fire behaved, and there's the suggestion that perhaps the Marysville fire was deliberately lit," she said.

The two people that were arrested yesterday have been released with no charge.

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