Man lights bank on fire after loan rejection
(ANSA) – Brescia, December 11 – A 69-year-old man on Wednesday doused the interior of a bank with gasoline and lit it ablaze after having a loan denied in the northern Italian city of Brescia.
Two tellers and the branch director were inside Veneto Banca, a lender located near the Brescia courthouse, at the time of the incident.
According to a preliminary reconstruction, the bank had denied approval for collateral on the man’s mortgage in recent days.
The man reportedly entered the bank early Wednesday. After confirming his rejection with bank employees, he poured gasoline across bank furniture from a can he managed to take inside. The man then lit the bank on fire.
The branch director managed to flee to the street and flag down passing police. The fire was put out and there were no injuries. The man was arrested and hospitalized after complaining of sudden illness.