He had remained an unknown figure behind one of the most devastating fires the department had ever seen. On Thursday 3 July 2025, the Perpignan Criminal Court sentenced a 53-year-old man to six years’ imprisonment, to be served without parole, along with five years’ socio-judicial supervision, for deliberately starting several fires in the summer of 2022, including the one in Opoul-Périllos. This fire, fanned by the tramontane wind, destroyed 1,100 hectares, mobilised 540 firefighters and threatened hundreds of homes.
The defendant, who had no previous criminal record, admitted to starting this fire, as well as two others in Calce and Espira-de-l’Agly. A social housing technician living with his mother, he attempted to explain his actions by citing a deep sense of unease, combined with a long-standing fascination with fire. “I had urges, as if a voice were commanding me,” he told investigators, according to reports in L’Indépendant.
The profile of an obsessive arsonist
In the dock, the man in his fifties expressed confused remorse. He said he had been suffering for years following the death of his father, who was also a former arsonist, and claimed to have started a total of 32 fires since his teenage years. These were acts of rare gravity, which the psychiatric assessment did not, however, link to a mental disorder.
The prosecutor described the defendant as a “pathological arsonist” and expressed concerns about the risk of reoffending. The court endorsed this assessment by handing down a custodial sentence, including mandatory treatment, community service and compensation for the numerous civilian victims.
A lasting impact on the local area
Beyond the criminal aspect, the consequences of the Opoul-Périllos fire remain severe. Seven firefighters were injured, the A9 motorway was closed, rail traffic was disrupted, and facilities were destroyed. An explosives depot located 200 metres from the fire front narrowly avoided disaster.
The cost to local authorities is colossal. The SDIS 66 has allocated more than 676,000 euros for this operation alone. Compensation claims will be the subject of another trial scheduled for next January, but towns such as Opoul-Périllos and Salses-le-Château already know that they will never be fully compensated.
The mayor of Opoul, Patrick Sarda, testified in court about a night of anguish and trauma that still runs deep among the residents. “There is a before and an after,” he insisted, according to comments reported by *L’Indépendant*.
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