Kavala: 80-year-old arrested over intentional arson

A man aged 80 was arrested in the Dipotamos area of the Municipality of Nestos, Kavala, accused of intentional arson. According to the Fire Service bulletin, reported by TA NEA, Capital.gr and Newsit.gr, the Greek national is alleged to have set fire to dry grass with an open flame at around 19:25 on Sunday 16 August 2026. His personal details have not been made public. The case will be examined by the competent prosecuting authority, and until an irrevocable court ruling is issued the accused is presumed innocent. The area burnt has not been disclosed, nor whether any property was damaged. Nor has it been disclosed whether the fire spread beyond the point of ignition or whether fire crews had to be deployed to extinguish it.

The arrest comes alongside a wider set of figures released by the Fire Service. Between 1 January and 16 August 2026, 722 administrative fines were imposed nationwide, totalling 1,152,891.95 euros, while 302 arrests were made in flagrante for causing a fire. Those numbers cover both intentional arson and the far more frequent cases of negligence: burning crop residues, the use of spark-producing machinery and barbecues on high-risk days. The Municipality of Nestos extends across flat farmland and wooded hills, with the Nestos Delta a protected area within the NATURA network. The proximity of cultivated land to natural ecosystems makes any uncontrolled burning potentially dangerous for protected habitats.

The distinction between intent and negligence is legally decisive. Intentional forest arson carries a custodial sentence and mitigating circumstances are limited, while arson through negligence attracts clearly milder penalties. In practice, proving intent requires evidence that is rarely available immediately, such as witnesses, ignition materials or recordings. In this case the charge was framed as intentional arson, although the reasoning of the Fire Service has not been made public. In practice, the great majority of arrests involve farmers and residents burning residues or prunings, often unaware that the act is absolutely prohibited throughout the fire-prevention season and not only on high-risk days.

Eastern Macedonia and Thrace has been consistently among the higher-risk regions this year, with Evros and Rodopi returning almost daily to the Civil Protection forecast maps. The fire-prevention season runs until 31 October and the burning of agricultural residues is banned throughout it. TodayGrid has recorded the aggregate prosecution figures in the report «Fire Service: arrests and fines in seven regions». More on the Crime page. The Fire Service has investigating officers who look into the causes of every fire and draw up a report, which is forwarded to the prosecutor. It has not been announced whether flagrante procedure was followed in this particular case.