Chilean authorities have arrested a firefighter and a forestry worker on suspicion of starting a fire in February that killed at least 137 people.
Police Chief Eduardo Serna said one of the men was employed by the national forestry company responsible for fighting forest fires.
The suspect has been remanded in custody and charged with arson causing death.
The fires, the country’s deadliest, devastated the Valparaíso region, more than 122 kilometers (75 miles) from Chile’s capital Santiago.
Officials said multiple fires started at the same time, and then high temperatures and strong winds caused the fires to spread.
More than 16,000 people were affected by the fires, which destroyed homes and devastated the region, which is home to the popular resort of Vina del Mar.
Commenting on the arrest of the firefighters, Vicente Maggiolo, commander of the 13th Valparaiso Fire Company, told local media: “We are very shocked by what happened. It was a complete incident. Isolated incident.
“We have served Valparaiso for more than 170 years and cannot allow this to happen.”
“There were about four outbreaks, equidistant from each other,” prosecutor Osvaldo Ossandón said.
Materials used to start the fire were found in the home of one of the suspects, he said, adding that investigators were looking into possible links to other arson attacks.
