a teenager sentenced to three years of placement in a closed educational center, two of which were suspended

Another suspect must also be tried on January 10 for the same case.

A 15-year-old teenager, convicted of the fire at the Pissevin police office (Gard) last August, was sentenced to three years of placement in a closed educational center, including two years of suspended probation, Monday 2 December by the Nîmes children's court, reports France Bleu Gard Lozère. He is also banned from staying in Nîmes for three years.

During the hearings, the teenager admitted to having set fire to the premises adjoining the police office. He was particularly confused by the prints that investigators found on a can of gasoline discovered at the scene. But the minor also assured that he had acted at the request of older individuals, without providing a name, undoubtedly for fear of reprisals.

The police were still able to identify another suspect, a 28-year-old man, suspected of having taken part in the operation. The latter fiercely denied. He was to be tried on November 8, but he asked for more time to prepare his defense and his lawyer requested additional information. The hearing is scheduled for January 10.

On the night of August 20 to 21, explosions then a fire affected a business in Pissevin. The police office, “freshly built and whose inauguration was imminent”according to the prosecutor, was “affected in its solidity by the consequences of the fire declared in an adjoining business”. In this case, six people, three adults, aged 20 to 28, and three minors, aged 15, 16 and 17, were arrested on November 5. Four had been released.