A firebug is thought to have started up to 10 fires north of Dubbo in 2017.
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They kept volunteers and staff of the NSW Rural Fire Service (NSW RFS) Orana team on the go for several months until the fires “just stopped”.
Team member, Inspector Bob Conran, reports that arson is “not a common occurrence out here but it does happen”.
His advice follows the NSW government’s announcement on Thursday that it is seeking to ramp up the maximum penalty for the crime from 14 to 21 years in jail.
State Member for Dubbo and Minister for Police and Emergency Services Troy Grant joined Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Attorney General Mark Speakman in warning offenders that they may end up in prison for “more than two decades”.
The tougher penalty to be introduced into the NSW Parliament this month will apply to the specific bushfire offence under section 203E of the Crimes Act of intentionally causing a fire and being reckless about it spreading on public land or someone else’s property.
Mr Speakman will ask the Sentencing Council of NSW to consider if the five-year standard non-parole period for the bushfire offence should be increased, and review the maximum penalties for a range of arson offences including destroying or damaging properties by means of fire.
“The reforms will provide a strong deterrent to would-be arsonists while more than 99 per cent of the state is gripped by drought,” Mr Grant said.
“With low rainfall predicted in coming months and large swathes of bushland looking like a tinderbox, we must do all we can to protect the state from another disaster.”
NSW RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons has called on the community to be vigilant and report suspicious behaviour to Crime Stoppers.
“Starting bushfires is not only a criminal offence but also has the potential to damage properties and put lives at risk,” he said.
Inspector Conran said in the case of the fires north of Dubbo “we didn’t have many leads to help the police”.
“But we have had some success in the past in working with the police in tracking down people who have deliberately lit fires,” he said.
