Owners claim their properties were set alight by goblins or jinns in order to claim insurance money or even to get a new house, the Khaleej Times website reports . A police fire expert has rubbished the idea as little more than a scam, telling the paper that their investigations suggest the fires are often either started deliberately or caused by negligence. "Fire experts follow scientific methods according to specific rules," says Ahmed Mohammed, a senior fire expert at the Criminal Evidence Department of the Dubai Police. "There have been cases in which a person or persons tell lies, and make weird claims that a jinn is behind the fire," he says, adding that many people don't know how to deal with fires when they start. A straightforward solution would be to set up CCTV cameras in buildings, Mr Mohammed says.