A 71-year-old man who started a fire in the Longdong area of Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, surrendered himself to police over the weekend.

Li Zhaokun, who has no children, used to scavenge from rubbish dumps to survive. He confessed that he used a cigarette lighter to light newspaper and dry wood on a hill in Longdong, causing a forest fire.

The fire started at 8:10 PM and was brought under control in 20 minutes.

More than 0. 67 hectares of forest were burnt in the blaze.

Li surrendered himself to police the next day, asking to be imprisoned. He said he wanted to be imprisoned because he wouldn't have to worry about food and clothes.

Current law stipulates a person responsible for a forest fire could be sentenced to three to 10 years' imprisonment.

(Guangzhou Daily November 14, 2006)