The Judiciary Police also informs about another figure, which also constitutes a record, which is the number of women detained (18 out of 88) for the crime of forest fire, as well as a group of people “very senior, of very advanced ages and for unequivocal intentional actions”.
The year 2025 until this Thursday resulted in a record 57 alleged authors of criminals in preventive detention, in a total of 88 arrests, revealed the Judiciary Police (PJ).
“We currently have 88 arrests, all arson, which is our legal jurisdiction. Of these 88 arrests, we have 57 individuals with custodial measureswhich is a significant number, in the order of 65%”, Avelino Lima, national responsible for the Permanent Monitoring and Support Office (GPAA) for the PJ’s forest fires, told journalists.
“It’s a record in our entire history”he added, noting that this year the number of ignitions was lower than in other years.
In statements on the sidelines of part of the celebrations of the 80th anniversary of the Judiciary Police and which takes place this Thursday in Coimbra, the director of the PJ Center Board also highlighted that the data available to date demonstrate the research work that has been carried outin collaboration with other entities, in particular with the GNR.
On the other hand, the number of ignition reduction working groups under the jurisdiction of the PJ, which increased from two to five, “helps us to produce more complete proof, more demonstrative of the author’s responsibility [dos incêndios florestais]”, he explained.
“And the judicial authority, obviously, with stronger evidence, has no difficulty – considering the type of crime, the type of danger posed, the damage to the community – in placing these individuals in preventive detention and a few, some, in house arrest”, emphasized Avelino Lima.
The number of women detained has increased
The person responsible for GPAA also highlighted another piece of data, which also constitutes a record, which is the number of women detained (18 out of 88) for the crime of forest fire, as well as a group of people “very senior, of very advanced ages and for unequivocal intentional actions”.
Expressing concern about these numbers of older arsonists, the head of the Center’s Board of Directors also stated that the almost all of the 88 arsonists arrested this year by the PJ “are not responsible for just one ignition”data demonstrated in the communications that that criminal police issue, that is, a “logic of authorship of the fire or fires”.
On the other hand, data that have not yet been validated, because the investigations have not yet been completed, indicate that two of the three biggest fires that occurred this year in Portugal had natural causes.
Avelino Lima said, however, that the Most forest fires in Portugal result from human action – whether it is intentional, whose investigative powers lie with the PJ, or negligent, “effectively combatted by the National Republican Guard”.
“Our rural community, essentially, has a very close relationship and the need for the regular use of fire. Obviously, this use, in times of great risk, cannot be accepted in any way”, he warned.
He also alluded to the issue of possible intent, explaining that if the use of fire is prohibited due to very severe weather conditions, it is not at all acceptable, regardless of the reason any citizen may have, “for there to be use of fire and then this use leads to disaster, as has been the case”.
North and Center dominate in the number of arrests
When asked by the Lusa agency about the geographical areas of the country where the most arrests of arsonists were observed, he replied that This number is higher in the most rural and wooded areasparticularly in the central and northern interior.
“Given that, this year, we have already seen arrests on the south bank [do Tejo]quite significant”he noted.
Although 2025 has not yet ended, and the data is therefore preliminary, Avelino Lima highlighted that work that is being carried out “is the work of a whole”.
“We cannot detail anything, any specific aspect. But, in fact, there was a greater commitment, a strong investment in training, a strong investment in equipment, there is excellent coordination with other entities, the national director [da PJ, Luís Neves, na sua intervenção na conferência] was very clear about this: we have no longer been balkanized for many years, as he rightly said, we are working together, in a very serious and constructive way, and this results in the results that we see”, he argued.
Regarding the profiles of the arsonists, Avelino Lima noted that these are created throughout the year and that the individuals identified this year will be added to those existing in “ten years of this work, continuous work”.
According to the national director of the PJ, Luís Neves, in his speech at today’s conference, the number of arsonist profiles studied amounts, in total, to around 900.
