Auburn property belonging to Salim Mehajer's sister damaged in blaze
A property reportedly belonging to the family of controversial Auburn deputy major Salim Mehajer was damaged in a fire on Saturday night.
A butcher shop, web design business and DVD rental store were well alight when crews were called to extinguish the blaze at 84 Auburn Road late on Saturday night, a NSW Police spokeswoman said.
Around $100,000 of damage was done to the property, which is listed at belonging to Mr Mehajer’s younger sister Khadijeh Mehajer, Fairfax Media reports.
A police spokeswoman said emergency services brought the blaze under control and contained much of the damage. Nobody was inside the premises at the time.
The property, which was purchased by the Mehajer family for $800,000 in 2011, is part of an area which Auburn Council recently approved for high density residential and commercial mixed use, Fairfax Media reports.
Ms Mehajer’s property on the eastern side of Auburn Street, has reportedly been rezoned for commercial mixed use.
Buildings up to 21 metres tall can now be built on Ms Mehajer’s fire damage property and six others, while residential buildings up to 16 metres tall can now be built on another 35 properties on the street.
Mr Mehajer declined to comment on the suspicious fire, saying that reporters should contact the tenants who were leasing the property.
This is the second property belonging to the Mehajer family to be involved in a fire over the past two years.
An empty single-story house in Lidcombe owned by Ms Mehajer's older property-developing brother was damaged by a suspicious fire in February 2014.
NSW Police from Flemington Local Area Command are investigating the cause of the fire. Anyone with information is asked to contact police.
