Sicilian firefighters detained after ‘starting fires so they can get paid to put them out’ during Italian heatwave

‘More than a dozen volunteer firefighters in Sicily have been accused of deliberately starting fires so they would be paid to extinguish them.
One person has been arrested and a total of 15 firefighters were detained after they reportedly rang the emergency number themselves or asked their friends or family members to call.
The commander also allegedly skipped shifts to start the fires. He was placed under house arrest as he allegedly continued starting fires after other volunteers had stopped.
The team came under suspicion as they were called out more frequently than other local groups.
The team in Ragusa responded to 120 incidents, compared with 40 incidents dealt with others in the summers of 2013 and 2014, police said.’
Read more: Sicilian firefighters detained after ‘starting fires so they can get paid to put them out’ during Italian heatwave