YINCHUAN - A local procuratorate said on Sunday that the suspected arsonist set a bus on fire in northwest China after he failed to resolve a financial dispute with a construction contractor.

A bus caught fire on the morning of Jan 5 in Yinchuan City, capital of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. The fire has left 17 people dead and 33 injured.

Police detained the arson suspect Ma Yongping later that day. The procuratorate in Yinchuan approved the arrest on Sunday.

The procuratorate said Ma failed to resolve a financial dispute with a construction contractor and expressed his discontent by setting the bus on fire.