Scouting Lierop will not be prosecuted for causing a forest fire in Best. According to the Public Prosecution Service (OM), there is not sufficient evidence that the tea lights of the scouts caused the fire at the Schietbaanlaan in early September. A spokesperson for the Public Prosecution Service has confirmed this. According to him, the damage appears to be not too bad and the Public Prosecution Service therefore decided not to prosecute anyone at all.
During the investigation, the judiciary spoke with the underage members of the scouting from Lierop. It was impossible for the Public Prosecution Service to determine who or what was responsible for the flames. Therefore, it has now been decided to dismiss the whole case.
tea lights
During a scavenger hunt in the dark, the scouting had brought gas lamps, presumably to mark the route. The fire brigade later discovered burning tea lights on the forest paths. “Whether that actually caused the fire has yet to be investigated,” said Jos van den Akker of the Brabant-Zuidoost Safety Region at the time.
Drought
During the period that the fire started, it had hardly rained for a long time and the nature reserve was very dry. Forest ranger Frans Kapteijn was angry when he heard the probable cause of the fire. “Sit in a forest with tea lights. That is too absurd for words,” he said at the time.
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