Charges for school fire

NINETEEN months after St Andrews Lutheran College was almost burned to the ground, a wealthy former student has been charged with arson.

Gold Coast police yesterday arrested a 20-year-old man over the Anzac Day fire that caused almost $7 million damage to Tallebudgera Creek Rd School in April last year.

He was charged with two counts of arson and is expected to appear in the Southport Magistrates Court today.

The first count relates to the alleged torching of the school at night, which destroyed a theatre and classrooms.

The second relates to play equipment that was allegedly set alight in a Tallebudgera park five days earlier.

The damage bill to St Andrews is estimated at more than $6.5 million.

No one was injured in the blaze, which took firefighters six hours to contain.