The trail also lead to France's disadvantaged housing projects, putting them in the national focus. One week to the day after the fire in Nantes Cathedral, the African volunteer who was taken into French police custody shortly after the blaze and then released, has … "The suspect, an asylum-seeker from Rwanda who has lived in France for several years, had apparently been tasked with locking up the cathedral on the night of the fire. Last spring, the famous Notre Dame cathedral caught fire, leading to the destruction of its spire and much of its roof.

(Photo by Sebastien SALOM-GOMIS / AFP) (Photo by SEBASTIEN SALOM-GOMIS/AFP via Getty Images)

The two fires have led to increased questions around the security at some of France’s most precious pieces of cultural heritage.©2020 Artnet Worldwide Corporation. A 39-year-old man who had responsibility for locking the cathedral on Friday night was questioned by police on Sunday, but was later cleared of all suspicion. July 19, 2020 9:36 PM ET. Peter and Paul in Nantes, France, is seen July 18, 2020, in this screen grab obtained from a social media video. Share. Media playback is unsupported on your device. After several hours, they had put the fire, though smoke could still be seen coming from the structure.

Firefighters are at work to put out a fire at the Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul cathedral in Nantes, Even as firefighters subdued a blaze that broke out Saturday morning at the Cathédrale Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul in Nantes, prosecutors opened an official investigation into possible arson. A general view of fire at the Cathedral of Sts. French Police Suspect Criminal Motive In Nantes Cathedral Fire (Photo by SEBASTIEN SALOM-GOMIS/AFP via Getty Images) Comments Marlo Safi Culture Reporter. --- #Nantes - fire ravaged the 570 years old #Cathedral The fire had broken out behind the grand organ, which was completely destroyed. NANTES, France (CNS) -- French police have opened an arson investigation into a fire at a Gothic cathedral in Nantes.

(Photo by SEBASTIEN SALOM-GOMIS/AFP) Police arrested the 39-year-old on July 26 after he "admitted during the first interrogation before the investigating judge that he had lit the three fires," said Pierre Sennès, the public prosecutor in Nantes.Fires were set to the cathedral's main pipe organ, another small instrument and an electrical panel.The man, who migrated to France from Rwanda, was indicted for "damage, deterioration or destruction by fire".The prosecutor explained that foul play was suspected after receiving "initial results from the forensic laboratory of the Paris Police Prefecture," which noted "the identification of traces of a flammable product".Video footage also made it possible to "identify an individual in the cathedral during a time slot corresponding to the start of the fire" and this man showed "strong similarities with the person under investigation".The examining magistrate is expected to order a psychiatric examination. A Rwandan refugee, who worked as a caretaker at the cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul in Nantes, was arrested on Saturday night in relation to a fire on July 18 that destroyed the 15th-century church’s organ, shattered its stained glass windows, and blackened walls. UPDATE: Law enforcement suspects that this was an arson as there were multiple fires set in the building. French authorities said the fire started in three different places, and they suspect arson. The 39-year-old suspect had previously been questioned immediately after the fire and released without charge. Stained glassed windows at the front of the cathedral were blown out. News France: Suspect in Nantes Cathedral arson attack confesses, lawyer says. Font Size: Police are investigating a fire at the 15th century Nantes Cathedral in France, suspecting that the incident was caused by criminal motive. Sometime after 7 a.m., flames were spotted and firefighters were called to the scene. One of his tasks was to lock the doors of the cathedral in the evening.The cathedral's rector, Father Hubert Champenois, had explained last week that this man was a "Rwandan who came to take refuge in France a few years ago".The man reportedly had exhausted all avenues of appeal, including the refugee appeal board, even after trying to obtain the status of a foreigner in need of medical attention.The prosecutor also reports that the suspect had sent emails to some members of the diocese and to administrative authorities.