ROME, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) -- A volunteer firefighter has been reported for arson, Italian media said Friday.
The suspect told police he set fires for the thrill of it and because he wanted to emulate the characters in an American TV series on firefighters, Italian news agency ANSA reported.
Police nailed him with video surveillance, showing how he set the fires in the northern Pavia area, then showed up with his colleagues to put them out.
La Stampa daily newspaper posted a nighttime police video, showing the suspect pulling up to a trash bin and setting it on fire. The volunteer firefighter has quit his post, ANSA reported.
On August 7, police in the southern Sicily region arrested the leader of a 15-man volunteer firefighter unit on suspicion of arson.
The unit faces charges including fraud against the state and arson, because they allegedly set fires in order to get paid, the police said in a statement.
Volunteer firefighters are paid 10 euros (11.76 U.S. dollars) an hour, but only when they are in action, the police statement said.
Italy this summer has been plagued with scorching temperatures, drought, and devastating wildfires that have destroyed thousands of hectares of public land, including national parks and nature reserves.
"1,099 interventions underway, 108 due to brush fires," the national firefighting corps tweeted Friday.
