France: he sets fire to his home to make his friends leave

A 34-year-old Frenchman started a fire in his own apartment in Nantes on Saturday evening, in an attempt to drive his friends away, causing the building to be evacuated.

The young man, considered to have a fragile personality, admitted to having started the fire in his ground floor apartment around 11 p.m., according to West France.

The apartment was cluttered with belongings and the fire quickly broke out, giving off black and nauseating smoke, causing the building to be evacuated at the same time. No injuries were reported, but many residents had to be relocated.

The arsonist was placed in pre-trial detention, “his criminal responsibility remains to be determined”, a police officer told the daily.