A volunteer worker at the cathedral in the city of Nantes, France, has admitted that he set fire to the cathedral, badly destroying the 17th century organ and the windows of this cathedral.
The 39-year-old accused, who is an asylum seeker from Rwanda and has been living in France for several years, was arrested at the beginning of the month when laboratory tests proved that the cause of the fire was deliberate arson, the local prosecutor's office said.
"My client has cooperated," lawyer Quentin Chabert told the Presse-Ocean newspaper on Sunday, without talking about the causes, motives and reason for burning the Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul.
"He is remorseful for what he has done...my client is consumed with remorse," Chabert said.
Prosecutors opened a case after finding that the fire had been lit in three different places in the cathedral, which the volunteer had closed the night before.
He was questioned but released without charge, and the rector of the cathedral said "I trust him as I trust all the assistants here".
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A volunteer is arrested for the fire in the cathedral of Nantes
Nantes prosecutor Pierre Sennes said in a statement that the penalty could be up to 10 years in prison and 150,000 euros.
"The defendant admitted that he had lit three fires, at the big organ, at the small one, and near the electrical panel," he told reporters.
In addition to the organ, very old artefacts and paintings were also burned, including the work of the 19th century artist Hippolyte Flandrin, and windows that were part of the 16th century.
