Rural Fire Service volunteer Brendan Piccini deliberately lit 10 fires

The shocking reason behind a volunteer firefighter’s decision to deliberately start 10 fires has been revealed in court.

A Rural Fire Service volunteer deliberately lit 10 fires because of a desperate desire to fit in and be part of a team after he suffered years of bullying at school, a court has been told.

Brendan Piccini, 21, used a cigarette lighter to start the fires he would later respond to at various locations across northern NSW’s Tweed Valley during a four-week period in 2020.

Brendan Piccini was a member of the Burringbar Rural Service.

After pleading guilty to 10 counts of recklessly intentionally causing a fire, Piccini faced Sydney’s Downing Centre District Court for sentencing on Wednesday.

Judge Dina Yehir said Piccini’s case was “exceptional” because people in and around his home town of Murwillumbah had rallied to encourage his “rehabilitative journey” and provide support.

The court was told that Piccini was aged 18 when he started the fires and had been volunteering with the local RFS for about a year.

“In my head I’m thinking ‘why don’t I light some fires, I could get out and be part of the team’,” Piccini said in a letter read out in court.

Brendan Piccini (centre, wearing black) walks out of Lismore District Court with a large group of supporters after an earlier court appearance.

Judge Yehir said Piccini had below average intellectual ability and was “incessantly bullied by other students as a result of his learning difficulties” in the years leading up to his arson spree.

The court was told that at its most extreme the bullying left Piccini with a broken leg after he was pushed down stairs.

Judge Yehir said experts had concluded the sustained nature of the abuse eroded Piccini’s sense of self-worth and led him to seek out groups to help him feel the sense of belonging he craved.

“Given his low intellectual ability and youth, I am not persuaded his conduct was result of considered contemplation of the consequences of his actions,” Judge Yehir said.

“The unchallenged evidence is that the offender was diagnosed with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactive disorder) at the age of 12

“His social exclusion impacted on his development and it directly impacted on his offending conduct.”

No one was injured as a result of the fires Brendan Piccini started. Picture: NCA NewsWire / James Gourley

Judge Yehir told the court that nine out of the 10 fires were lit in a way that made them easily identifiable and allowed for easy access by fire crews.

“Some of these fires were described as ‘small scrub fires’,” she said.

“There was little planning and organisation.

“He has pleaded guilty at the first available opportunity.”

After Piccini confessed to police about the arson spree, the court was told he spent two months remanded in custody.

“This is not an insignificant period of incarceration,” Judge Yehir said.

“That period spent in an adult jail would have been a frightening experience for a young man.”

While in custody, the court was told older inmates forced Piccini to put money in their bank accounts and held a “shank” to his throat.

“It was scary horrible, I couldn’t sleep, I was always on edge,” Piccini told the court.

Piccini’s arson spree came just months after the end of a horror bushfire season. Picture: Zizi Averill

After his release from custody, the court was told Piccini took part in a process known as restorative justice, where he apologised to local fire bosses who now describe him as “a much liked member of the team” and “hard working and polite with a bright future ahead of him”.

Judge Yehir said Piccini, who now works as a scaffolder, had also started renovating old furniture and donating it to a palliative care facility.

“The best way to reduce the risk of reoffending is to allow the offender to continue in his employment and counselling,” Judge Yehir said.

Piccini was convicted and handed a three-year term of imprisonment to be served in the community in the form of an intensive corrections order.

He was also placed on two community corrections orders and directed to undertake 400 hours of community service work and stay engaged in treatment with medical professionals.