Police are appealing to the public for more information after three boys aged under 12 'deliberately' set fire to twelve hay bales on a farm.
Staffordshire Police said the incident happened on a farm in Gnosal during the late evening of Saturday 18 May.
There, the boys, thought to be aged between 10 and 12, are believed to have 'deliberately' set a total of 12 hay bales alight.
The force described the boys as wearing shorts and t-shirts. One of the them had a red bike.
The Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service also attended the scene.
It said: “Crews went to a farm in the Gnosall area just after 11:15p.m on Friday, May 17, with colleagues from Staffordshire Police and found 12 small hay bales on fire."
“A hose reel jet was used to extinguish the fire by 2:30a.m on Saturday, May 18.
“An investigation into the cause of the fire later determined that it was started deliberately. Colleagues from Staffordshire Police are now investigating.”
The number of farm fires shot up by 21% last year to £83.5m, the latest figures by NFU Mutual show.
Staffordshire Police are urging anyone with information to get in touch by calling 101, quoting incident 32 of 18 May.
Alternatively, LiveChat can be used or the anonymous service Crimestoppers, which is available on 0800 555 111.
