A 50-year-old man has been identified and reported to authorities after entering the parish church of Saints Peter and Paul in Castrezzato and setting fire to decorative fabrics on two side altars.
On Friday 17 April 2026, a man entered the parish church of Church of Saints Peterand Paul, located in the historic centre of Castrezzato, in Piazza Santa Maria degli Angeli.
According to the reconstruction by authorities, the individual approached two small side altars along the nave of the church and deliberately used a lighter to set fire to decorative altar cloths placed on them. After igniting the materials on the altars, he left the premises.
The fire remained limited to the altar textiles and extinguished itself before spreading to the wider structure of the church or causing more extensive damage. A churchgoer noticed smoke and immediately informed the parish priest, who subsequently alerted the Carabinieri.
Officers from the Castrezzato Carabinieri station examined video surveillance footage from inside and around the church, enabling them to identify the suspect. The man, described as a 50-year-old resident of a neighbouring town, was reported for damage caused by fire. No injuries were reported.
Source: primabrescia.it