Prosecutors have officially charged a volunteer firefighter and a forest official in Chile with being involved in starting the wildfires that swept through central Chile last February, resulting in the deaths of over 130 people. The individuals implicated so far are volunteer firefighter Francisco Ignacio Mondaca, along with Francisco Pinto, an official from Chile's National Forest Company, which is under the Ministry of Agriculture and responsible for preventing wildfires.
The Public Prosecutor's Office in Valparaíso, a coastal city near the areas most affected by the fires, announced on Saturday that the suspects are in custody pending trial. Communications with the lawyers for the two men could not be established immediately.
Prosecutors said they obtained evidence showing that Mondaca and Pinto acted intentionally and that they were aware of the ideal weather conditions for starting the fires. Officials found that in all four locations where the fires first ignited on February 2, they also discovered tools made from cigarettes and matchsticks that sparked the flames.
The wildfires were the worst natural disaster to hit the South American country since the 2010 earthquake and tsunami that killed more than 500 people.
