.jpg?20260722')
A Sitra man who is facing trial in four separate cases for burning dumpsters near his house has cited psychological reasons for his actions.
“I did it because of my mental health situation due to the current state of affairs,” the 46-year-old defendant admitted before the High Criminal Court yesterday. “I also did it because the trash smells awful and I didn’t want it to become a source of diseases, since garbage bins aren’t emptied often enough,” the Bahraini said.
In all four cases, the man was charged with intentionally starting a fire in the dumpsters in his neighbourhood in Mahazza, Sitra, and endangering the lives and property of those around him.
The middle-aged defendant earlier admitted to setting tissue paper on fire with his lighter, then throwing it into the dumpsters, causing fire to spread.
He had allegedly committed the arson over the course of several months – from early February until June.
He admitted to charges multiple times, during police questioning and Public Prosecution interviews. Several security camera recordings caught him in the act, the court heard.
“In a residential area, a thin man wearing a white thobe was seen putting on a dark shawl around his neck, and walking towards a dumpster on the side of the road,” read the prosecution summary of one of the CCTV videos.
“As he walked away from the dumpster, flames began rising from the waste container.”
Distinguishing details about the individual incidents were limited in court files, as charges were identical in all four cases.
Policemen arrested the defendant in June, after receiving a report from the Sitra Police Station, an officer testified.
The court adjourned the hearing to July 28 for defence arguments.
&uuid=(email))