Italy Firefighters Arrested for Starting Fires to Get Paid

Aug. 8, 2017
Fifteen volunteer firefighters were arrested in Sicily for starting fires to earn commission.

Fifteen volunteer firefighters were arrested Monday in Sicily for allegedly starting fires to earn commission from putting them out. Members of the response team in the southeastern town of Ragusa also purportedly made fake emergency calls to earn a stipend for responding to them. The volunteers either made the calls from their own phones or asked family members to report the fires.