The Guardia Civil is investigating whether the fire at the Casa Lola settlement in Sant Josep that killed a 48-year-old man on September 27 may have been deliberately started.

Investigators have found indications that have led them not to rule out a criminal line of investigation, but the Guardia Civil stresses that all hypotheses remain open while the cause of the fire is being established.

Investigation Remains Open

The fire broke out during the early hours of Sunday, September 27, at a makeshift structure within the Casa Lola settlement in the municipality of Sant Josep.

The emergency was reported at approximately 07:10. The 48-year-old man, a Paraguayan national who was occupying the structure, suffered burns to around 90% of his body.

Emergency medical teams stabilised him at the scene before he was transferred to Can Misses Hospital, where he was admitted to the intensive care unit as a seriously burned patient. He died at around 17:00 the same day because of the severity of his injuries.

The Guardia Civil opened an investigation immediately after the fire to determine how it started and what circumstances surrounded the incident.

Possible Deliberate Origin

The latest development is that investigators have identified indications that mean a deliberate origin cannot currently be excluded.

According to the Guardia Civil, the investigation remains open and all hypotheses are still being considered. The possible criminal line therefore represents an investigative avenue rather than a confirmed conclusion about how the fire began.

No suspect has been identified publicly in connection with the fire, and the authorities have not announced that anyone has been arrested or charged over its origin.

What Happened on September 27

According to the emergency information released after the incident, the fire affected a precarious structure within the Casa Lola settlement near Camí des Jondals in Sant Josep.

Six firefighters were sent to the scene with two vehicles, including a water tanker and a heavy rural fire engine. Police and emergency services also attended.

The flames affected the structure and surrounding items, including tarpaulins, chairs and butane cylinders. The fire was brought under control without developing into a larger forest fire.

The victim was the only person publicly confirmed to have died as a result of the incident.

Casa Lola Settlement Under Scrutiny

The fatal fire has also brought renewed attention to conditions at the Casa Lola site in Sant Josep.

The area has developed into a settlement of makeshift structures following the demolition of earlier illegal constructions on the property. Local officials and neighbours have previously raised concerns about precarious buildings, improvised utility connections, waste accumulation and fire risk.

Those wider issues are separate from the criminal investigation into the September 27 fire. No connection between those reported conditions and the possible deliberate origin of this particular fire has been established.

Property Dispute Also Continues

Casa Lola has been at the centre of a long-running dispute involving the property, planning issues and people living on the land.

Following the fatal fire, the municipality and the property's representatives publicly exchanged differing accounts over the situation at the site and the steps being taken to address the occupation.

The property's legal representative has said that a court application for the removal of occupants was submitted several months ago and that the matter remains before the courts. That is a separate legal process from the Guardia Civil's investigation into the fire.

No Final Cause Has Been Established

For now, the most significant development is that the Guardia Civil is considering the possibility that the fire was intentional.

That does not mean investigators have established arson, nor does it identify who may have been responsible.

The investigation remains open, and the final cause of the fire will depend on the evidence gathered by investigators.

The September 27 incident has already resulted in the death of one man. The new information from the Guardia Civil adds another serious dimension to the case, but the circumstances surrounding the fire remain under investigation.

Accuracy note: The Guardia Civil confirmed on September 29 that all hypotheses remain open in the investigation and that a criminal line has not been ruled out because of indications that the fire may have been deliberate. The cause of the fire has not been conclusively established, and no publicly identified suspect has been announced in the sources reviewed. The deceased was a 48-year-old Paraguayan man who suffered burns to approximately 90% of his body and died later on September 27 after being admitted to Can Misses ICU.