When investigating the occurrence of dozens of fires in the three municipalities, the PJ “proceeded, after collecting a vast body of evidence, to identify, locate and arrest three men, of Portuguese nationality, outside the act of committing a crime, as there were strong indications against them of the practice of multiple forest fire crimes” in those locations.

As part of an investigation, one of the three men, 27 years old and with a criminal record, was suspected of “dozens of fires” committed “since at least 2017”, in the municipality of Arruda dos Vinhos.

The suspect had already been detained in October 2021, as part of another investigation for similar crimes.

In another investigation, the PJ detained a 49-year-old man on suspicion of committing four other crimes of forest fire in the same place, in 2020, 2021 and 2022, near the defendant's residence, in Vila Verde dos Francos, in the municipality of Alenquer.

In a third investigation related to six forest fire crimes, in Abra, in the municipality of Santarém, a 54-year-old man was arrested.