ALEXANDRIA — A storage barn was destroyed by fire Jan. 8 in South Glengarry, fuelling suspicion in the area that an arsonist is back at work.

No one was injured in the fire that began at about 7:30 p.m. at a vacant farm owned by Andre Hamelin, 10 km southeast of Alexandria. An off-duty volunteer firefighter noticed the blaze as he was driving by, police say. A fire marshall is investigating to determine if the cause is arson.

Police have confirmed at least 12 arsons last year among 16 fires in eastern Ontario, surrounding Winchester, in a small area roughly from Metcalfe to Morrisburg. The first suspicious fire was onJune 2 last year.