Fire series in Freiamt: 31-year-old deemed unfit to stand trial, outpatient treatment requested
Following five fires on an August night in 2025, the public prosecutor has requested outpatient treatment for the suspect. A psychiatric assessment found him unfit to stand trial.
Fire series in Freiamt: Suspect was in psychotic state at time of offences
Following completion of investigations into the fire series in Freiamt, the Muri-Bremgarten public prosecutor has requested outpatient treatment for a 31-year-old Swiss man. According to 20 Minuten, a forensic psychiatric assessment has established that the man is unfit to stand trial. The application is before the Bremgarten district court.
In the night of 11 to 12 August 2025, several fires broke out in quick succession in Uezwil, Wohlen and Büttikon. These affected a wood stack, a petrol station depot, combustible material in front of a residential house and a lorry. The fire service extinguished the fires quickly and partially prevented larger damage. However, considerable property damage was sustained at the petrol station and to the lorry.
Given the temporal and geographical clustering of the fires, the authorities proceeded on the assumption that the fires were deliberately set. A man with strong suspicion of involvement was arrested early in the morning and a criminal investigation was initiated. The accused is alleged to have committed five acts of arson of varying severity, including attempted arson.
The assessment found the man to be suffering from a paranoid-hallucinatory disorder. During the period in which the offences occurred, he experienced an acute psychotic episode, was in a psychotic state and had reduced impulse control. The law does not provide for punishment in such cases. To reduce the risk of reoffending, the public prosecutor has requested long-term outpatient treatment.
The proceedings have not yet been concluded in a legally binding manner. Until the Bremgarten district court reaches a decision, the presumption of innocence applies.
Source: 20 Minuten