Personal drama Arsonist from Elgg ZH had lost her job and her cat

The suspected arsonist from Elgg is in custody and has confessed. New findings show that she was struggling with various problems. Her landlord is still surprised.

The people of Elgg can breathe a sigh of relief. The person who set a series of fires has been arrested and confessed. She has set fire to three buildings since mid-March.

As was already suspected, it is a local resident. However, according to research by "Tamedia", the fact that it is a 44-year-old single mother comes as a surprise to the village community.

Elgg ZHPolice arrest 44-year-old woman after series of arsons

Former cantonal councillor Bernhard Egg (SP) has been renting the apartment to the confessed suspect for 14 years, where she lives as a single parent with her daughter. Although she grew up in the village, she is not very integrated.

She was a loner. According to him, she did not have a permanent job, but only part-time assignments. But it's not as if she didn't have any acquaintances: she was arrested when she was having coffee with a neighbor.

Psychologically burdened,

The Tages-Anzeiger newspaper, citing several sources, writes that two events put additional strain on her: She had lost her job and her cat had died.

However, the woman was not a member of the fire department, as is often the case in arson cases and was also implicated in this series. The municipality of Bonstetten ZH also experienced a series of fires in the first half of 2024. A firefighter is actually responsible for these.

According to the cantonal police, the suspect has "largely confessed" to setting several fires. Whether she is responsible for all the fires and traces of fire in Elgg ZH, or whether she has found copycats, is part of the investigation. The suspected arsonist is in custody.