A Canadian man who promoted conspiracy theories claiming wildfires were deliberately set by the government has been convicted of starting 14 fires himself.
Arsonist Brian Paré, 38, pleaded guilty earlier this week to 13 counts of arson and one count of arson with disregard for human life.
“As his main motivation, [he] “He claimed he was doing tests to determine whether the forest was really dry or not,” said prosecutor Marie-Philippe Charron, according to The Independent.
Prosecutors said one of the fires set by Paré led to the evacuation of at least 500 homes in Chapais, Quebec, in June 2023, according to CBC. That fire alone burned 873 hectares (about four square miles) of forest, officials said.
“On May 31 at 8:30 p.m., the city of Chapais issued a mandatory evacuation order due to the devastating fires, in particular the Lake Cavan fire as well as the airport fire, two fires that are included in the charges and were caused by the accused,” prosecutor Marie-Philippe Charron said during a hearing Monday at the Chibougamau court.
Brian Paré of Quebec pleaded guilty to starting a series of devastating wildfires that caused hectares worth of damage and displaced hundreds of Canadians last year. Brian Pare Veilleux/Facebook An aerial image released by the Societe De Protection Des Forets (SOPFEU) taken on June 29, 2023 shows firefighters flying over a controlled burn to combat forest fires in the Canadian province of Quebec. Société de Protection Des Forets/AFP via Getty Images
The Chapais fire was one of the first five that Paré started between May 31 and June 1, prosecutors said. The wave of fires began just three days after the Quebec government banned open fires in or around the forest due to increasingly dry weather conditions.
Investigators noted that the series of five fires had no possible natural causes.
In his social media posts, Paré falsely claimed that the government had started the fires to convince people of climate change, according to The Independent.
Brian Paré posted his conspiracy theories on his Facebook page and claimed that government officials were responsible for the fires. Brian Paré Veilleux/Facebook
Paré became the main suspect after police investigated the 38-year-old man on June 2 when he was seen in the area where a fire had started. Investigators began following his social media posts where he claimed the government deliberately set the devastating fires to trick people into believing in climate change.
Paré was arrested on September 7 after investigators obtained a warrant and installed a tracking device on his vehicle. Prosecutors said Paré was traced to the locations where some of the fires were started.
When questioned by police, Paré admitted that he was the one who started the fires.
Flames rise along the edge of a wildfire, seen from a Canadian Forces helicopter surveying the area near Mistissini, Quebec, Canada, June 12, 2023. via REUTERS
“At that moment, the accused admitted that it was he who started the fires and, as his main motivation, he stated that he was doing tests to find out if the forest was really dry or not,” said Charrón.
Paré’s defense attorney requested a pre-sentence report, which should be released in April. He remains detained pending his sentencing.
Canada’s 2023 wildfire season broke records, burning about 18.4 million hectares or 45.5 million acres, about the size of North Dakota, CNN reported.
According to the Quebec Forest Fire Protection Agency, lightning contributed to last year’s record fires in Canada. About 53% of the fires were caused by lightning, the agency said.
“Widespread drought combined with a devastating line of lightning are responsible for this historic season,” a Quebec fire agency spokesperson told CNN.
The winds pushed toxic smoke and ash from the devastating Canadian fires southward, choking New York City with unhealthy air quality for days.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn